Visited Upon the Son
by sparkyCSI
Summary: It's been five years since Voldemort was defeated. Follow Hermione, the last surviving member of the Golden Trio as her life is changed forever. HGDM. Please read and review! COMPLETE
1. Old Enemies

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**_Okay guys. This is my first HP fanfic, so I hope everyone likes it. I don't know how often I'll update, but I will tell you that reviews give me inspiration! Enjoy!!! While I am posting this under the name "Visited Upon the Son" the Title that I came up with is really "Sins of the Father", but seeing how many fic's had that name…I modified it!_

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

"The sins of the father are to be laid upon the children." - Shakespeare, "The Merchant of Venice," act III, sc. V, l. 1

**Chapter 1. Old Enemies**

May 1, 1997

_Hermione Granger looked around her at the dark and dank dungeon that she was being held in. She tested the restraints around her wrists, hoping that they would come free. _Just my bloody luck, _she thought when the restraints just tightened on her wrists. She ceased her struggling, knowing that for the meantime it was useless to fight back. _Brightest witch of my generation my bloody arse! If I'm so bloody bright, how did I get myself into this stupid situation?

_She sighed in relief as the restraints eased when she stopped struggling. She felt like a fool. She knew that splitting up from Harry and Ron was a mistake, but she was so sure that she could handle whatever spell anyone could throw at her that she insisted that she would be fine. She didn't see the three Death Eaters waiting for her behind the statue of the gargoyle not far from the Great Hall. She _had_ heard the stunning spell being yelled, but reacted to late. When she woke up from the spell, she was chained to the wall of a pitch black dungeon, her wand nowhere to be found._

_Suddenly, she jumped. She heard footsteps outside the door. She squinted in pain as the door opened, flooding the room with bright light, which after the complete darkness of the dungeon, blinded her. Her eyes watered as they finally adjusted to the increased light levels and she gasped at the sight in front of her. Lord Voldemort._

_She cringed in disgust as he walked over to her and ran his hand down her face. _

"_Ah. Potter's little Mudblood," he said. "I've wanted to get my hands on you for a long time. I think it's time that you learned your place in the magical world."_

_Hermione cringed at the evil laughter that erupted from his throat. She flinched when his hand moved from her face and started to work its way down her chest. She saw him move his lips, but could not hear any sound due to the blood rushing in her hears. Then she felt a breeze on bare skin and looked down to see than he had made all of her clothes vanish. She whimpered as he began to violate her body…_

July 31, 2002

Hermione sat up in bed, a scream tearing from her throat. She panted as the remnants of the nightmarish dream played in her head. "Oh Merlin. Why do I keep dreaming about that awful day?"

She looked at the clock on her bedside table. The dial glowed, proudly announcing that it was three o'clock in the morning. She shuddered. Lying back down, she tried to go back to sleep, but it alluded her. She finally gave up the fight at four and decided to go take a shower. This was a ritual after she had the nightmare. She would take a shower and try to make herself feel clean again.

When she exited the shower, she took a long look at herself in the mirror. Her eyes, which once sparkled with life, were dull with dark rings around them. Her brown hair was no longer bushy, but she kept the length to just below her shoulders. She looked at herself in disgust at the shell that she had become, and then she realized the date.

_Damn it__! Today is Harry's birthday. He would have been twenty-two, _she thought sadly. The war had been ended, but the cost was high. Everyone in the wizarding community had lost a friend or family member to the war. Those closest to Harry Potter had lost the most.

The Weasley's had lost Ron, Charlie and Percy—who had finally come to his senses. Hermione had lost both of her parents to a Death Eater raid on her house. The biggest loss of the all was the death of Harry. He had died just as he killed Voldemort. Hermione was at a loss for a year after the fateful final battle. She drifted from place to place, trying to lose herself in the dark pit of despair that had overwhelmed her.

She sighed as the tears filled her eyes. If it had not been for Professor McGonagall, Hermione knew she would have taken her life on the first anniversary of the end of the battle. She smiled sadly as she thought back to that fateful day.

June 2, 1998

_Hermione stood at the grave of Harry and Ron. She looked down at the __solemn tombstone that marked their graves. "Harry James Potter and Ronald Weasley. Best Friends who paid the ultimate price for the good of mankind." She wept silently for her lost friends and sank down to the ground in her grief._

"_Harry. Ron. It's me, Hermione. I don't know what I will do without you. It turns out that I'm not at all that brave. Harry, you are the greatest wizard that ever lived. You gave me more courage than you will ever know." She let out a choked sob, her tears falling to the ground. "Ron. I loved you. You were my first love. I just wish that I could have told you that before the final battle, but I didn't want to distract any of us from the task at hand. I never expected both of you to die on me. You were not supposed to die! That's not how this was supposed to end. Ron…We should be getting married; instead I'm left here with a shattered heart. But I've made up my mind. I can't live in this world anymore. Soon, I'll join you."_

_With a shaking hand, she withdrew a small vial of a potion from inside of her robe. She drew a breath, trying get up the courage to drink it. It was a powerful potion that she had created, that would kill her painlessly. Just as put the vial to her lips, she heard a shout behind her._

"_Accio vial!"_

_She turned in rage as the potion flew out of her hands and into the hands of her mentor. Professor McGonagall ran up to her. "My dear girl! What are you doing?"_

_Hermione broke down. "I just want to die! I don't deserve to live," she wailed._

_Minerva looked down that the broken girl, in concern. "Hermione, it will be alright." She started to continue, but realized that she was not listening to her. Instead, she gave into her mothering instincts and gathered her in her arms, letting her sob out all of her pain._

Hermione knew that she owed her life to her mentor. She had not only stopped her from committing suicide, but she had given her a reason to live again. She had offered her the position of Transfiguration Professor at Hogwarts, her reasoning being that since Hermione was her top student and always helping Harry and Ron with their homework, she would be perfect for the job.

With a deep breath, Hermione drew herself away from the mirror and the memories that she always found there. She walked back into her bedroom, grabbing a pair of yoga pants and T-shirt out of her closet. She quickly dressed and walked into her kitchen to start breakfast.

As the eggs were boiling, she heard a meow. She smiled and looked down at Crookshanks, who was winding his way around her feet. "I guess you want breakfast, too." She moved to the pantry and withdrew some dry cat food for him. She filled up his bowl and made sure that he had plenty of water. "Well, boy. Do you think you are up for a trip to the cemetery? Then I need to head over to Molly's. She'll want to have the family all together for this solemn occasion."

Crookshanks looked up at her and gave a meow of consent. Hermione smiled fondly as she bent down to pet his head. "Thanks, old boy." Just then the egg timer went off and Hermione sat down to eat her own breakfast.

A couple of hours later, after reading the Daily Prophet, she got dressed in a sober black suit. The A-line skirt fell to just below her knees and the fitted jacked hugged her curves. She grabbed her best black robe to go on over it and grabbed the bouquet of lilies that she had purchased for the occasion.

Then she grabbed her wand and Appearated to the small, concealed cemetery where Harry was buried.

She walked to the grave, noticing the peaceful quality in the air. When she got to his grave, she bent over and put the flowers in the urn. "Happy birthday, Harry. I still miss you, even after five years. I hope that you and your Mum and Dad are happy together." She bowed her head in a silent prayer, and then stood back up to leave. Then with a crack, she Appearated to the Burrow.

Hermione made her way up the steps, to the home of the woman whom she considered to be her second mother. She smiled as she walked in, the scent of lunch wafting throughout the air. With a small smile on her face, she walked into the kitchen. "Hello, Molly. Can I help?"

Molly Weasley jumped in surprise. "Oh goodness, Mia. You startled me! But, no dear. I don't need any help. You just sit there and relax."

Hermione nodded, knowing that it was still useless to argue with Molly. She took the time to study her, taking in the changes that the previous five years had wrought. She was still a little plump, with more grey in her red hair. Her face was still kind, but there were more lines around her eyes.

"Are you sure? Who all is coming today?"

Molly smiled. "Yes, dear. I'm sure. Everyone will be here except for Bill, Fleur and their children. Bill flooed me this morning and said that the children had terrible colds and he didn't want to risk getting anyone else sick."

Hermione nodded. "I understand. How is Ginny doing?"

Molly sighed at that question. Ginny had taken Harry's death the hardest. If she had not found out a few weeks after the battle that she was pregnant, Hermione was sure that she would have followed Harry to the grave. "She was up this morning crying, but she is trying to put on a brave face for James and Lily." Molly's face lit up at the mention of her grandchildren, who were four years old. "I think that she has come to terms with his death, for the most part, but she still misses him terribly."

Hermione opened her mouth to respond, but she was cut off by the sound of running feet. She turned as the two children ran into the kitchen. "Aunt Mia! Aunt Mia!" they yelled.

"Hi, Jamie. Hi, Lily." She opened her arms to the two children and quickly enveloped them into a hug. Jamie looked just like his father, black hair and emerald green eyes, while Lily took after Ginny with red hair and green eyes.

"James Arthur Potter! Lilith Molly Potter! What have I told you about yelling indoors?" scolded Ginny as she walked in behind them.

"Sorry, Mum" came the subdued response from both children.

Ginny smiled. "That's alright. Just use your indoor voice from now on."

"Yes, ma'am."

Hermione looked at Ginny. She had grown more beautiful in the previous five years. Her hair was still a fiery red, but her body had filled out to that of a woman. She was slender and very tall.

Ginny smiled at Hermione as she sat down at the table. "Hi, Mia. How are you doing?" she said as she looked into Hermione's eyes.

"I'm okay," the brunette responded. She looked back into Ginny's eyes and noticed that they were still red. "How are you doing?"

Ginny sighed. "A little bit better each day. It helps having those two around. I can't feel sad for very long when they are in a playful mood. I'll admit that I miss him, but for their sake, I have to move on."

Hermione nodded her understanding. "I know. It's just hard."

"Yeah, it is."

Close to an hour later, the house had filled up with the remaining guests. Fred, George and Arthur had shown up, along with Remus, Tonks and Professor McGonagall. Molly was in her element, entertaining all the guests.

After lunch, the adults retired to the living room and Ginny had put the twins down for a nap. Hermione sat in the chair, watching the flames of the fire flicker as she was lost in her thoughts. She was startled out of those thoughts by Professor McGonagall.

"Hermione, dear. Can I speak to you in the kitchen?"

Hermione looked at her, with a question in her eyes. "Alright." She got up and followed the older witch into the kitchen. "What's going on?"

Minerva sighed. "I don't know how to say this to you, but I wanted you to hear it from me."

"Minerva, you're scaring me. Are you retiring?"

Minerva smiled. "No dear. We have finally filled the Potions position."

Hermione smiled in relief. "Oh. That's good! We haven't had a decent professor for that class since I began teaching."

"Yes, it is good. But…" Minerva trailed off.

"But what?"

"The person who is going to teach is Draco Malfoy."

Hermione's eyes opened in shock. "Malfoy? Minerva, I…I don't…" Hermione trailed off in disbelief.

"Dear, I know that you two had your differences in school, but he was cleared of all charges. He did give us valuable information that helped us locate Voldemort and Snape. His grades were second to only yours in that class. He truly is the best person for the job."

Hermione felt her world drop from under her. She just shook her head from side to side in her astonishment. "I can't work with him, Professor. You know this better than anyone."

Minerva started to say something, but Hermione cut her off. "I can't handle this," she said tearfully as she got up from the table. She then ran outside in her distress. She didn't stop running until she had reached the small pond on the Weasley's property. There she sank down to the ground, sobs racking her entire frame.

**AN:** _Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Did you love it or hate it? Let me know!_


	2. The First Meeting

Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**_Thanks to everyone who read and especially to those who reviewed. It makes me feel so loved. Also, since I was remiss in doing this the first time around...Much love goes to Axellia, my beta, for helping me to make this more British!_

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**Chapter 2. The first meeting**

Molly watched as Hermione ran out of the house in tears. She stood up and quickly walked into the kitchen. "What did you say to her, Minerva?"

Minerva sighed. "I just informed her that the new Potions Master is Draco Malfoy."

Molly's eyes opened wide. "Malfoy? That git? How could you, Minerva?"

"He was the best possible person for the job."

Molly just shook her head. "She is just getting over what happened to her five years ago and now you throwing her past in her face? You know how much the boy resembles his father. This is going to destroy her!"

Minerva just shook her head. "I know, but I had no choice. We need a competent Potions Master and he was the only one qualified."

Molly just levelled a scathing look at the Headmistress and followed Hermione's path out of the house. She found her, sobbing by the pond. She sat down next to her and put her arms around her. "Mia, dear. Minerva just told me what she had done. I'm so sorry. Is there anything I can do to help?"

Hermione just shook her head, unable to speak. She burrowed her face into the older woman's shoulder and sobbed out her grief and fear into her robe. Molly just stroked her hair, soothingly.

Finally, after about thirty minutes, Hermione's sobs dwindled down. Molly looked down at the exhausted girl in her arms. "Dear, I know this is hard for you, but Draco is not his father."

"I know," came the muffled reply. "He will just remind me everyday about how unworthy I am to be alive."

Molly felt a rage come over her with Hermione's depressed response. She placed her hand under Hermione's chin and lifted her face up to look in her eyes. "What happened when you were captured is not your fault. Neither is it Draco's fault. Place the blame where it should reside. Lord Voldemort and his followers."

Hermione just shut her eyes, trying to block out the pain. Molly signed and drew the woman up into a standing position. "Come on. I'm not letting you stay out here. You can stay here tonight and then go home tomorrow."

Hermione nodded dully and followed Molly back into the house. The rest of the group stared as they walked back in, Ginny rushing over in concern. "Hermione? Are you alright?"

Molly shot her daughter a look that told her to leave the woman alone. "Ginny? Don't ask any questions right now. If Hermione wants to explain the situation to you when she wakes up, it's her business, but right now, she is going to bed." Molly silenced the rest of the group with a look and took Hermione upstairs, to Charlie's old room. She quickly got her into bed and within moments, Hermione was fast asleep.

When Hermione awoke the following morning, she was disoriented. She looked around the room she was in and realized that she was still at the Burrow. The events of the previous day came crashing back. She whimpered a little at the memories that surfaced, but quickly shoved them out of her mind. _Molly is right. Draco is not his father. I'll just have to overcome my feelings for him._

She got up quietly and walked down into the kitchen, noticing that Molly must have transfigured her clothes into pyjamas. When she walked into the kitchen, she noticed Ginny making breakfast. "Good morning."

Ginny turned around, her concern for her best friend evident in her eyes. "Good morning. How are you feeling? Will you tell me what's wrong?"

Hermione sighed, she knew that Ginny would interrogate her, but she wished she had waited to start until she had eaten breakfast. "I'm feeling better. I just got some upsetting news yesterday." She saw by the look on Ginny's face, that she was not going to accept just that as an answer. "Draco Malfoy is the new Potions Master."

Ginny sucked in a breath. "Oh my. You guys have some bad blood between you."

_You have no idea,_ thought Hermione.

Ginny looked at her closely. "But I thought he was cleared of all wrongdoing."

"He was," came the terse answer. "Look Ginny, I really don't want to talk about it. I feel a little better now, but it was just a huge shock to me when the Headmistress told me that."

Ginny realized that Hermione was not telling her everything that had led up to her breakdown, but knew her best friend well enough to know that she would not reveal anything else that had happened, so she let it drop. "Okay. I won't pressure you for answers, but you do know that I am here if you want to talk, right?"

Hermione smiled faintly. "I know that, Gin. I just really do not want to talk about it. Look, I need to go home. I'm going to start preparing for the upcoming school year. I'll owl you later, okay?"

Ginny nodded. "Okay." She watched in concern as Hermione transfigured her clothes back into the suit she had been wearing and then Appearated out of the Burrow.

August 24, 2002

Draco Malfoy looked around his manor to make sure that he had everything. He called to his favourite house elf, "Mossy?"

"Yes, Master?" the shy elf stated.

"If I left anything behind, will you owl it to me?"

"Of course, Master. Mossy will definitely do that for you."

Draco smiled at the shy creature. "Thanks." He turned and grasped his bags in hand and soon was walking down the streets of Hogsmeade. He looked around, feeling a little nostalgic. Shaking his head, he made his way up the path to the castle.

When he walked up the steps, he noticed Headmistress McGonagall waiting for him. "Headmistress," he said respectfully.

"Professor Malfoy. I'm delighted to see you. If you will follow me, I have some things to discuss with you before you are shown to your quarters."

Draco just nodded and followed her through the corridors. Within minutes, they were standing in front of the gargoyle that guarded the Headmistress' office.

"Phoenix," stated McGonagall. The gargoyle jumped to the side and both of them made their way up the stairs.

Professor McGonagall sat behind the desk and motioned to the chair in front of her. When Draco sat down, she said, "Lemon Drop?"

Draco looked at her in shock. "Um. No thanks."

"Pity, they really are quite good. I must thank Albus for getting me quite addicted to them."

"You're welcome, Minerva," said the portrait of Albus Dumbledore.

McGonagall smiled. "Anyway. Draco, the reason that I called you up here was to speak with you in regard to a matter of a delicate nature. I assume that you are aware that with your new job, you become the Head of the Slytherin house." At Draco's nod, she continued, "The Head of the Gryffindor house is Hermione Granger."

Draco again nodded. "I had figured that out for myself, Professor."

McGonagall nodded. "I knew you would. I am aware of the bad blood between yourself and Professor Granger. I expect you to treat her with the utmost kindness and if I hear that you are in anyway making her feel uncomfortable, I will make sure that you will never step foot on these grounds again."

Draco sat in shock as the realization of what McGonagall was saying sank in. "In all due respect Headmistress, if you are so concerned with the well being of Ms. Granger, why did you hire me?"

McGonagall sighed. "The truth is that you are the best person for the job."

Draco nodded. "Thank you for the compliment. I can assure you that I am not the unfeeling git that I was during my school years." Draco sighed, collecting his thoughts. "That night, in sixth year, when I was charged with murdering Professor Dumbledore, was a realization to me. I realized at that point how insane He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named and his followers were, my father included. I simply could not murder someone in cold blood. I'm just grateful to Professor Snape for saving my mother's life by completing my task. That is the only reason that I agreed to do the task."

"I know this, Draco. That is the major reason that I have few qualms at hiring you; just mind what I say about Ms. Granger." McGonagall's face brightened. "Now that all the serious business is concluded, please let me get someone to show you to your suite. There will be a welcoming dinner tomorrow night, so that all the professors can get acquainted."

Dobby popped into the room and McGonagall smiled. "Dobby? How is it that you anticipate my needs before I vocalize them?"

"That is my job, Mistress. I knew that you would need someone to show Master Draco to his suite."

"That is perfect, Dobby. Also, please ready Professor Granger's quarters. She shall be here shortly."

"Yes, Mistress." Dobby turned to Draco. "Follow me, Master Draco."

Draco nodded and followed the elf out of the office.

* * *

Hermione looked around her flat one last time, to make sure that she had not left anything behind. She signed in depression. Usually she was excited to see the new school year arrive, excited to be teaching again, but this year her stomach was filled with lead. She wanted nothing more than to crawl back in bed and forget that the outside world existed.

She finished her walk through of the flat then gathered her luggage. She shrunk all the inanimate objects, to fit in her pockets, and picked up Crookshanks carry case. "Well, old man. You ready for a new school year?" Crookshanks didn't answer, he just twitched his tail. With the case in hand, she Appearated to Hogsmeade, to walk to the school.

She felt a calm come over her at the familiar surroundings. Slowly, her depression lifted slightly until she felt somewhat normal. She quickly walked towards Hogwarts and made her way up the familiar path. When she got to the entrance, she noticed Professor McGonagall waiting for her.

"Mia. It's good to see you. I am still so sorry how I sprung the news about Professor Malfoy on you."

"Minerva. It's fine. I'm not going to say that it's going to be easy, but I do understand what you had to do. After all, it's the children that we must think about."

McGonagall looked at Hermione with a little concern in her eyes. "Are you sure that you are alright, dear?"

"Yes, Minerva. I'll be fine. Let me go put my stuff up in my suite and I'll meet you for a spot of tea."

"Of course. The password to my office is Phoenix."

Hermione nodded as she walked toward to quarters near Gryffindor tower. When she got there, she quickly stored all of her belongings and noticed a cup of hot chocolate sitting on her table next to the fire. _Bless you, Dobby. You always know what I need._

She slowly sipped the hot chocolate while gathering her courage to leave the safety of her quarters. When she had finished the drink, she picked up her wand and began the walk to Minerva's office. She nodded to the various paintings as she walked past them and sighed as she heard Peeves raising a ruckus in an empty classroom. She was almost to McGonagall's office when a voice behind her stopped her in her tracks and sent shivers of fear running down her spine.

"Excuse me?" said Draco, not recognized Hermione. "Can you tell me where…" Draco stopped mid-sentence when Hermione turned around. "Granger?" he asked in shock.

"Malfoy," responded Hermione coolly. "Can I help you?"

Draco looked at the woman in front of him, who looked completely different from the girl that he remembered. She had tamed her hair and it currently hung just below her shoulders in soft waves. The Muggle clothing that she was wearing emphasized her curves, while still being modest.

Hermione saw his perusal of her body and shuddered in disgust. She turned and began to walk away from him when he stayed silent.

Draco cursed silently as she began to walk away. He ran after her and softly grabbed her arm. "Wait!"

Hermione jumped at the touch and swung around to confront him. She froze when her eyes met his. Her memories of Lucius superimposed themselves over Draco's face. "Let me go," she said warily, the fear evident in her voice.

Draco drew his brows together, noticing how the blood had drained from her face. "Are you alright?" he asked in concern. He didn't miss the flash of fear that moved over her face as she wrenched her arm from his.

Hermione was lost in her memories. She did not hear Draco's voice, she heard Lucius' silky drawl about what he was about to do to her. In a panic she tried to fight him and was surprised was her arm came free. She took her shot at freedom and turned to run down the hall.

Draco stood in the hall, his face a picture of confusion as she ran away from him. _What in the bloody hell just happened here? Why was Granger scared of me?_ He decided not to follow her and turned to return back to his quarters.

Hermione kept running until she reached McGonagall's office. Her panic has passed as she gasped out the password and then sprinted up the steps, but she was still in tears.

McGonagall was startled as Hermione came running into her office. "Mia? Are you okay?"

"No," Hermione sobbed. "I can't do this…It's too hard."

McGonagall's face grew stern as she realized what Hermione was talking about. "What did he do to you?"

Hermione looked up at the suppressed rage on her mentor's face. "He didn't do anything. He touched my arm to ask me if I was okay and all the sudden I was back there. In that dungeon with Lucius telling me exactly what he was going to do to me."

McGonagall felt a bit of relief that Draco had not stepped over the bounds, but also felt a great deal of concern for her favourite teacher as she dissolved into racking sobs. She spared a glance at the portrait of Dumbledore. "Albus? Could you get Poppy to come up here?"

The portrait of Dumbledore nodded and quickly vanished. Within minutes, Madame Pomfrey came running up the steps. "What happened here?" she snapped.

"Poppy, Ms. Granger was captured during the war by Voldemort and she just experienced a flashback to those times. Could you be a dear and mix up both a Calming Draught and a Dreamless Sleep Potion for her?"

The nurse knew that something more was going on, but also realized that it was not her place to ask. She nodded her agreement and pulled both potions out of her robes. "Albus, warned me. Here you go." She turned her attention to Hermione. "Hermione, you need to drink this. It will make you feel better."

Hermione shuddered as she drank the Potion down, the effect was almost immediate. Her tears slowed and she quickly wiped her face with the handkerchief that McGonagall had provided.

McGonagall looked at her. "Mia, I think you should use my Floo to go back to your quarters. Then drink the potion that Poppy gave you and rest."

Hermione nodded and slowly got up from her chair. She quickly used the Floo and walked back into her quarters. She was not surprised to see Dobby waiting for her with a meal.

"Is Ms. Mia alright?"

Hermione smiled at the elf. "I'm okay Dobby. I just need to get some sleep."

Dobby nodded to her. "Of course, Ms. Mia. I brought this dinner so that you can relax and then go to sleep."

"Thank you, Dobby."

Dobby just nodded and with a crack left her quarters.

Hermione thought back over the events of the day, with regret. _This is going to be a long year._

* * *

**AN:**_ Here are the review responses!_

_LosingTrack - Thanks! You were the first review. I hope that you continue to enjoy it._

_Mark - Was this soon enough? I'll be updating weekly more than likely, unless my muse gets busy with other stories...(cough, cough). (:D)_

_Thanks to Aleja21, LosingTrack and x.St Joan d'Arc.x for adding this to your alerts!_


	3. Truce

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:** _Okay, I appreciate everyone reviewing! I did go back and made some minor corrections to the chapters (Thanks to Mark for pointing out my mistake) and I must thank Axellia for making me write more British!_

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**Chapter 3. Truce**

When Hermione woke up the next morning, she felt better than she had in the previous two months. She slowly got up, the events of the previous day playing through her head. _Merlin! I can't believe that I spaced out on Draco. I feel so bad. I know that he is not his father, but…_Hermione's thoughts skidded to a halt at the memory of Lucius. She felt her muscles shiver at the memories that were invoked.

Hermione got out of her red and gold bed and went into the bathroom to take a shower. While she stood under the hot spray, she allowed herself to mentally picture Draco. She calmly examined the picture in her mind. She realized that he had grown up in the previous five years. He was a couple of inches taller and judging by the muggle clothes he had been wearing, he worked out. She also realized that his hair had not been slicked back like she remembered.

Thinking about the physical changes that Malfoy had undergone, she found she wanted to know if he had truly grown up. She knew that her outlook on life had changed dramatically after the war, so had the lives of many others. She sighed at the depressing turn her thoughts had taken.

She gave herself a mental shake and directed her thoughts to more pleasant subjects, namely the upcoming school year. Finally, she had finished getting ready, her hair pulled back in a utilitarian, but fashionable manner with a light amount of make-up on. She took one last look in the mirror and returned to the bedroom to get dressed. She looked into her wardrobe and decided that since the students were not back yet, she was not going to wear her wizard robes. Instead, she dressed in a conservative pants suit with a pair of sensible pumps. She grabbed her wand and made her way to the Great Hall for breakfast.

When she entered the hall, she smiled softly at a few of the teachers that were present. Many of the professors had been teaching when she was in school, although there were a few additions. Professor Trelawny had been killed at the beginning of the war by Voldemort, who was upset that she did not remember the prophecy that she had spoken and Professor Sprout had retired after being disfigured in the final battle. Taking their positions were Firenze and Neville Longbottom.

Hermione smiled brightly at Neville, who had been the Herbology professor for the previous three years, and took a seat next to him. "Good morning, Neville. How was your holiday?"

Neville smiled back at her. "Good morning, Mia. My holiday was terrific. I summered in the States."

"Really?" asked Hermione. "Where did you visit?"

"I started my trip in New York City and then travelled through the South. They have some of the most interesting plants in the southern part of the States. In Louisiana, in fact, they have this wonderful swamp plant that I am going to try to cultivate during the school year. I believe that it might have some healing properties which might help reverse scarring."

Hermione raised her eyebrows. "Really? That sounds wonderful. Won't it be hard to cultivate a plant native to that part of the States here in England?"

"It will be a challenge. I must get both the temperature and the humidity perfect otherwise the plant will not grow. I'm looking forward to the seventh years helping me out with my project."

Hermione nodded and they proceeded to discuss their holidays while eating their meal.

* * *

Draco awoke slowly, stretching languishly in the large bed. He laid there for a couple of minutes before making his way into the bathroom, to take his shower. In the shower, he reviewed the events of the previous day. _I wonder why Granger reacted the way she did. It's almost like she was reliving something. I know for a fact that I never did anything to her._

Draco stopped while washing his hair. "Okay, stupid boy. You did call her horrible names for six years. What? Did you really expect her to act like you never did any of that?"

Draco sighed, as the conscience he had found after failing to kill Dumbledore reared its ugly head. "I have so much to apologize for. Damn it, Malfoy's don't apologize!"

_That's what your father always told you, look where it got him, _said the nagging voice. Sighing in defeat, Draco laid his head against the cool tiles and stopped struggling. "Fine you stupid conscience! I'll apologize!" he shouted, feeling insane for having a conversation with himself.

Deciding that he had spent enough time arguing with his conscience, Draco hurriedly got dressed in a pair of trousers and a white button-down shirt. He cast a quick drying charm on his hair and ran a brush through his silky locks. Taking one last glance in the mirror, he began to make his way to the Great Hall for breakfast.

He was halfway there when he heard a voice call out behind him, "Mister Malfoy. We need to talk."

Draco turned around and looked at the stern Headmistress walking towards him. "Professor," he said nervously. He thought back to her warning in regards to hurting Hermione. "I swear, I didn't do anything to Gran—I mean Professor Granger."

McGonagall looked surprised at Draco's quick denial of wrongdoing. "I know you didn't, Draco. I just thought I would give you a friendly warning. Hermione has some horrific memories that she is dealing with, so be on your best behaviour around her."

Draco drew his brows together while he processed the information that McGonagall had given him. "What type of memories?" he queried.

McGonagall smiled at him. "That is something that you need to ask her. Now I suggest we get to breakfast before it is all gone."

Draco nodded and walked silently beside the older woman. When they arrived at the hall, he graciously held the door open and motioned for her to precede him.

They walked into hall and Draco immediately noticed that there were only two free seats. One next to Hagrid and one next to Hermione. Draco decided to take the lesser of the two evils and sat next to Hermione.

"Granger," he said coolly. He turned his gaze upon Neville. "Longbottom."

"Malfoy," Hermione replied just as coolly.

"Mal…Malfoy," Neville stuttered.

Draco rolled his eyes. "Longbottom, stop stuttering. You are not worth the energy to curse."

Hermione fought down her temper, but turned a burning gaze on him. "Malfoy, you are a right git, do you know that! If you are going to be an arrogant arse all year, I'll hex you myself!" With a huff, she turned to Neville. "Let's go outside, Neville. At least there, the air will be cleaner."

The pair quickly gathered their belongings and left the hall.

Draco steamed while eating his eggs. _How dare she! She's nothing. She just a dirty little mudblood. How can she even compare to my intelligence. I'll show that know it all._

Draco's thoughts kept seething while he ate breakfast and noticing the judgmental stares of the other professors, he decided to leave the hall quickly.

Outside, Hermione felt the anger coursing through her veins. "How dare he," she raged to Neville. "We've been professors here for years. How dare he walk in and just expect us to bow to him? He should be grateful that Minerva decided to take a chance on him. He should be rotting in Azkaban right now…" She trailed off her rant with a growl.

Neville looked at her. "Mia, really. It's okay. I expected worse from him. I'll just be happy if he keeps out of my way. Merlin knows I've had enough of his hurtful comments to be able to brush them aside. You should too."

Hermione sighed as she realized the truth of what Neville was saying. "You're right, Neville. It still just makes my blood boil. But we must show a united front to the students. I will not let a personal grudge drive a wedge of hatred between our two houses. We've worked so hard these last years to minimize that." She turned her gaze to the lake. "I'm going to have to be the bigger person here. I'll speak with him tonight at the dinner and inform him that we are going to have to come to a truce with the way that we speak to each other during the school year."

Neville nodded as he also gazed over the lake.

* * *

Later that night, Hermione was standing in front of her wardrobe, trying to decide on what to wear for the formal dinner that the professors were having that night. She took out a royal blue set of dress robes and then threw them down in disgust on the bed. "No. That's not right. Urg…Why am I having such a hard time choosing something to wear?"

She sat down in a chair and exhaled in her frustration. _You're just trying to impress that git, you know, _a nagging voice inside of her head said. _No, I'm not!_ she replied back with some force. "I am not trying to impress Malfoy!" she said aloud. Growing irritated with herself, she got back up out of the chair and made her way back to the wardrobe. She pulled out a formal black dress and decided to wear that. It was floor length and had spaghetti straps with a sweetheart neckline. She slipped into the dress with the matching black four inch stilettos with conviction.

Hermione walked into the bathroom and began to fix her hair and make-up. She decided to highlight her eyes and coerced her hair into soft waves. With one final glance into the mirror, picked up her wand and put it into the concealed pocket on the side of her dress. She took a deep breath and walked out of her room.

When she walked into the Great Hall, she was struck with a sense of wonder. The ceiling was enchanted to show all of the stars and constellations, with candles floating a few feet below them. There were tables set up, each with room for four settings and low, melodic music softly playing. She smiled as she walked up to McGonagall.

"Wow, Minerva. You went all out for this."

McGonagall smiled. "Of course my dear. This is the last chance to be completely with adults until next June. I want all of us to enjoy it. You will find that each table has a name plate. I did manage to make sure that you and Mister Malfoy are nowhere near each other."

Hermione nodded. "Thank you, Minerva. I really appreciate that." She nodded to the older woman and began to explore the room, looking for her seat. When she found her table, she smiled. She was seated with Professor Flitwick, Madam Pomfrey and Firenze. She continued to wander around the room and found that Malfoy was seated with Professor McGonagall, Hagrid and Madam Hooch. Their table was on the opposite side of the room as Hermione's. Smiling in relief, she walked back to her table to take her seat.

Ten minutes later, she was in an animated discussion with Professor Flitwick about the differences between Charms and Transfiguration. She paused in the mid-thought when she heard McGonagall get up for her speech.

Once there was silence, McGonagall began to speak. "Welcome, Professors; those of you whom are returning and those for whom this is the first time here. I am Minerva McGonagall, Headmistress. This is the annual pre-starting term feast in which we can get to know our fellow professors. I must go over a few things for those who are new, so forgive me if you have heard this before.

"While there are no things forbidden to the professor, I must warn you to take care in the Forbidden Forest. There are many magical creatures there who would like nothing more than to harm humans. We allow these creatures to live there to help guard the castle. Also, I want to reiterate the fact that we must show a united front to the students. For this reason, I must stress that if you have a personal problem with another member of the staff; please work to resolve it as soon as possible." McGonagall spared a glance to look at both Draco and Hermione.

"Now," she continued. "Let me introduce you to the Heads of House. For the Gryffindor House, it is Hermione Granger. For Hufflepuff, Neville Longbottom. For Ravenclaw, Professor Flitwick and for Slytherin, Draco Malfoy."

The rest of the staff applauded politely with each name called. Once the applause had died off, McGonagall motioned for silence again. "Now, with introductions completed, enjoy the feast!"

Hermione glanced towards Draco and noticed that he was wearing muggle clothes again. He was dressed in a black suit with a monochromatic silver shirt and tie that complimented his aristocratic looks. He was still not slicked back. _Huh. He's wearing muggle clothes again. The snot nosed little git who would not be caught dead near anything muggles have embraced their fashions. That tells me that he has mentally changed, but how much?_

Hermione stopped her wool-gathering and looked down as the food appeared on the plate before her. Trying to stop herself from obsessing over Draco, she turned back to Flitwick and continued their conversation.

On the other side of the room, Draco was quietly eating, trying to avoid conversation. He had not missed her pointed look at both him and Hermione when talking about resolving personal differences. He was so intent on ignoring everyone that when McGonagall asked him how he was settling in, he almost missed the question.

He shook his head slightly. "I'm sorry, Professor. I was lost in thought. I am settling in fine and I took the time today to go over my lesson plans for the first week. I'm especially concerned about learning the level of the other students."

McGonagall smiled. "I do believe that you will find them up to par. I do hope that you don't have any problems with the sixth and seventh year students. They would have been first and second years your final year of school."

Draco nodded solemnly. "I am aware of that. Although, if any of the students hold grudges, then I expect the trouble to come from the seventh years. I am prepared to be the most hated professor."

McGonagall nodded and turned her attention to Hagrid, to ask him about his upcoming lessons, lest they be too dangerous to subject students to.

Draco was grateful that her gaze was off of him and quickly finished his meal. Once done, he excused himself from the table and began to mingle with the other professors, who had also finished.

He was surprised by a light touch on his arm and turned to find Hermione gazing at him, warily.

"Malfoy? May I have a word with you?" she asked politely.

Draco nodded and motioned for them to walk outside. Once outside, he looked at her expectantly. When she didn't say anything, he decided to speak up. "Well, I don't have all night Granger."

Hermione gritted her teeth. "Did you not hear what Minerva was talking about? She was speaking to us, in particular. Look. I know that we don't like each other, but in order to have a successful school year, we need to come to a truce, okay?"

Draco drew back at the venom in her words. "Fine. I'll be civil to you in front of the students. Don't expect anything else." He threw those words over his shoulder as he walked back into the castle.

Hermione just stood where she was, battling her emotions at the familiar tone to his words.

* * *

**AN:**_Here are the review responses!_

_Losing Track - I'm going to try to update on Fridays, so you can look forward to it! Here's the next chapter!_

_pstibbons - I agree, but I will tell you that it will be a while in coming. I'm actually writing that chapter right now (chapter 14). It just wasn't feasible for her to tell him before that chapter. Now I wonder how he's going to take it! (:p)_

_AnaDry - Thanks! I'm glad you are liking it. _

_Mark - Don't worry about it. That's the beauty of fanfiction. I don't have to go strickly by the books! I now the suspense is bad, but I want to make sure that I have chapters available if my muse decides to take a 4 month hiatus again. (She went away between chapter 9 and 10). (:p)_

_**Reviews do make my muse write more!**_


	4. First Day

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**_ Many thanks go to my wonderful beta, Axellia, without whom, this story would not be as wonderful as it is! Thanks, hun!_

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**Chapter 4. First Day**

When Draco awoke after the welcoming feast for the students, he was in a grouchy mood. The reception from the students was cool, to say the best. He sighed as he began to get ready for the day. _I am so nervous that the students are going to hate me. All I have to go on is how Snape taught this class and I don't want to alienate the students._ He sighed again, as he gathered his lesson plans that he had prepared. He felt some relief that the upper years did not have classes with him until the next day. Thinking back to the schedule that McGonagall had given him, he felt like she had done him that favour, so that he could ease into teaching.

After the debacle that dinner was the previous night, Draco decided to just grab breakfast from the kitchens. After grabbing his breakfast, he arrived in the dungeon about thirty minutes before the first class was about to begin. He checked the potion stores, to make sure all the ingredients were correctly labelled. He then set up a caldron, so that he could demonstrate how to correctly add the ingredients. Taking McGonagall's advice, the first couple of classes were going to delve into the history and importance of potions.

He had just finished his preparations when the first of the students began to trickle in. Once the bell rang, signalling the beginning of classes, he looked over at the assembled Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff children. He cleared his throat. "Good morning, class. My name is Professor Malfoy. I will be your potions master. The first thing I would like to do is to get everyone's name."

He pointed to a blonde haired girl in the front row. "We will begin with you. Please state your name."

The girl did as she was told and quickly he went around the room, writing down the names of the twenty students in his class.

When the last student has introduced himself, he nodded. "Good. Now please take out your books. I'd like you to read the first chapter. Please raise your hand if you have any questions."

He looked around the classroom, as the students began to read. He noticed that most of the students read quietly, but there were two in the back of the room that did not look like they were doing anything. He looked down at the parchment in front of him to find there names. "Andrew, Devon? May I ask why you are not reading with the rest of the class?"

Andrew, who was in Ravenclaw, answered, "I read the first chapter last night, Professor."

Devon, nodded his agreement. "Very well, I do hope that you did. There will be a short quiz afterward the rest of the students are finished."

Draco smiled as both boys quickly pulled out their books and began to read.

* * *

Hermione sat at the Professor's table next to McGonagall the next morning. She was unsurprised to see that Draco had failed to show up for breakfast. She sighed as turned to McGonagall. "Do you think he's still here? Or did he run after last night's reception?"

McGonagall smiled. "He's still here, though I am not surprised that he did not come for breakfast. I must say that I am somewhat ashamed at the Gryffindors."

Hermione nodded. "I agree. I will have a talk with them in Transfigurations. It is not right for them to disrespect a Professor like that. Even if they do not personally like the man. I can definitely understand where they are coming from, but even I have made a truce with him."

"I trust your judgment, Mia. I shall talk to the other professors to make sure that they also pass on the advice."

Hermione nodded and continued to eat her breakfast. After she was finished, she made her way to the Transfigurations classroom. She set up the room, to her taste, and waited patiently for her students to arrive. She didn't have to wait long; within fifteen minutes all of the Advanced Transfiguration students arrived.

"Welcome, students. This is Advanced Transfigurations. The purpose of this class is to prepare you for the N.E.W.T. level exams. I can promise you that nothing that you have experienced in my previous classes has prepared you for the coursework that you will get this year."

There was a collective groan from the students. Hermione smiled, inwardly, at the students reactions. "On that note, you will also see some very advanced magic and at the end of the course, if you apply yourself, you will be able to duplicate the most of the spells. Before I begin today's discussion, I would like to address a very serious subject with you. Professor Malfoy."

Both the Gryffindor and Slytherin students looked around in confusion.

"I noticed at dinner last night, the disgraceful manner in which you received him. Really. Boo's? That is unacceptable. You are to treat him with the respect that a professor deserves." She delivered her lecture with a stern look.

One Gryffindor boy, Alec, decided to be impertinent. "But, Professor Granger. Malfoy is a git! He terrorized most of us at one point."

Hermione turned on the boy and delivered another withering stare. "So, I am aware. I do believe that you do realize that people grow up, correct? I was once subject to his bullying, yet I have put that in the past—where it belongs. I'm not saying that you must become his biggest fan, I'm just pointing out that anyone—I mean anyone who treats him unbefitting his station will lose house points." She looked around the room. "I trust that I've made myself clear?" All of the students nodded in their understanding.

Hermione decided to began the class at that point. "Please turn to the first chapter of your books. This chapter will introduce transforming humans into something else. Please be aware that when transforming a human, you must…I repeat, must…transform the human into a living animal. Let me demonstrate. Do I have a volunteer?"

Most of the students had looks of horror on their faces, but one brave Gryffindor raised her hand. Hermione motioned for the girl to stand up. "Do you have a preference for what you would like to be transformed into?" At the girl's negative nod, Hermione waved her wand. In a matter of seconds, in place of the girl, a small white kitten was standing by her seat. The rest of the students gasped in astonishment. Hermione smiled and transformed the girl back. "Thanks you, Valerie. Twenty points to Gryffindor. Now, class, please read the first chapter of your book. I expect a foot long essay on the hazards of human transfiguration by the next class."

The class let out a collective moan, but began to read their books.

* * *

Draco walked silently to dinner and thought about his day. _You know, _he thought. _On the whole, it was not a bad day. All of the students that I had today were the lower years and while they didn't greet me with open arms, they didn't boo me either._ He sighed a little as he made his way to the raised dais that the table was situated on. He sat down, next to Hermione and looked around the room. "Granger," he said softly.

Hermione looked at him and replied, "Malfoy." She took a helping of mashed potatoes, then offered him the bowl. "How was your first day?" She tried to keep her voice calm, truly trying to keep up with the truce that they had made.

Draco smiled ruefully. "It was okay. I only had the lower years today, so there wasn't anyone that wanted to hex me."

Hermione laughed in surprise. "Don't worry about that. I had a talk with the students and while they may not like you, they will not dare to harass you."

Draco looked at him in surprise. "Why did you do that?"

Hermione shook her head. "Honestly, I don't know. Minerva mentioned it to me, but I guess I'm just ready to put the past behind me. Plus, it's a good lesson for the students to learn."

Draco sat back in his chair, feeling a little humbled. "I really appreciate that, Hermione."

Hermione quickly turned her head and raised her eyebrows. "Hermione? Since when do you call me by my first name?"

Draco shrugged. "I figure that if we are trying to put the past behind us, then we should start calling each other by our proper names."

"I guess you're right," Hermione hesitated before continuing, "Draco."

* * *

**AN:** _Wow, guys! I love y'all. Thanks so much for the reviews! If you don't know, I'll let you know. I do accept anonymous reviews! _

_pstibbons - Nope. Narcissa is dead. That revelation comes up in a couple of chapters. (I pretty much killed people off at will, here!) There is a semi duel coming up here soon, so I hope you like it! There are some reason why McG isn't saying anything. Think of it as sort of a test, plus, no one but Molly and McG know what happened to her (those who did, have died) so she would feel weird betraying her trust. Thanks for the review!!_

_LosingTrack - Thanks! Here ya go. Due to incessant begging, I'm moving my updates to Thursday._

_Hotkat144 - Thanks! I'm glad you like it. (:D)_

_Mark - Ok. Fine. I'll update on Thursdays! You happy now?? (:p) I like Neville and he will grow more backbone, but childhood insecurities tend to influence your adult life, so it will be a process. I may not mention him much, but I promise, he will make piece with Draco at some point! I never liked Trelawney, so I was happy to get rid of her. I kinda went with JKR here. In book 6 when Slughorn comes in, he becomes the head of Slytherin, so I figured that it was the positions, not the person's previous house that determined who was Head of House. (:p) _


	5. Halloween

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**_Many thanks to Axellia for betaing this for me!_

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**Chapter 5. Halloween**

A few months had gone by, since Draco and Hermione's conversation at dinner. While, they weren't exactly friends, they had become close colleagues. They found that their classes were intertwined with each other, which led to some in depth discussions to the benefits and consequences of their respective disciplines.

Hermione found herself growing to respect the potions professor. She sat silently at the table, before dinner, her mind going over things in her head. _Hum…I don't cringe anymore when I see him. He has proven to me that he is nothing like that bastard of a father that he had. Wow. I didn't think that I would ever feel like that._

She was so lost in thought, that she didn't hear him sit next to her or ask her to pass the salt. She was jolted back into reality with a soft touch on her arm. She looked up in startlement. "I'm sorry. What did you say, Draco?"

Draco looked at her in concern. "Are you okay, Hermione?"

"I'm fine. I was just lost in thought. Harry…" she trailed off as the memories overwhelmed her. She took a breath and began again. "Harry and Ron used to kid me about that."

Draco noticed that brief pain that flashed across her face as the bittersweet memories threatened to overwhelm her. "Okay. I just asked if you could pass the salt."

Hermione did so, silently. He had just accepted the salt shaker, when McGonagall stood up.

"Students, your attention please?" The students looked silently up at their Headmistress. "As you know, Halloween is coming up in a couple of weeks. I would like to announce that there will be a Halloween Ball on Friday the twenty-fifth. This will be open to fourth years and above. This is a costume ball, so I would like to remind everyone to make sure that their costumes are within the acceptable school guidelines. Their will be a Halloween feast for all the students, starting at six p.m. and the ball will begin at eight p.m. Thank you and enjoy your dinner." McGonagall sat down after her speech and with a look at the professors, she added on, "Chaperones are needed for the students, and while you are not required to attend the ball, I must make sure that there are enough professors to provide adequate supervision."

Hermione sighed. "Well, I guess that means that I'll need to get a costume. I hate shopping!"

Draco laughed. "You're a woman. What do you mean you don't like to shop?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Just because I'm a woman does not mean that I enjoy shopping for clothes! I prefer to shop for books," she said primly.

Draco just laughed as they continued their dinner.

McGonagall looked over at the pair and sighed. While she was overjoyed that they had learned to get along, much to Albus' delight, she felt guilty withholding information from them. _Oh, Albus. What have you gotten me into?_

McGonagall continued to watch the pair over the following days, noticing the attraction between them and the easy manner in which Hermione interacted with him. She was in her office on the twenty fourth when the news of the new law by the ministry came in. Ironically enough it was Albus' portrait which told her of it. She was sitting at her desk, reading reports on the student's progress when the painting cleared its throat.

"Minerva? I have some news from the Ministry. They passed that retched law."

McGonagall looked at the portrait in disgust. "The Marriage Law has been passed? How are they going to choose the couples?"

"Those details had not been worked out when I left the Ministry. I did manage to overhear that it will be affecting every witch and wizard over the age of eighteen and under the age of fifty. Those couples which are engaged are, of course, exempt. Other than that, I do believe that the Ministry will be sending owls out. Warn them, Minerva."

Minerva sighed in resignation. "I will. I will bring it to everyone's attention in the staff meeting on Saturday morning."

* * *

Hermione put the finishing touches on her Fallen Angel costume on Friday. She looked down at herself, a little uncomfortable with the revealing quality of her costume. She had dressed in a dark grey dress which hugged her body to her knees, then flared out with lace. The dress had exposed shoulders with grey sleeves. She had affixed two tattered grey wings to her back with a simple sticking charm. Another charm made them flutter softly, like she was moving them. Above her head hovered a grey rose halo. "Perfect," she muttered, still feeling a little uncomfortable.

Hermione grabbed her wand, slipped it into a concealed pocket and walked out of her rooms.

When she got to the Great Hall, she helped McGonagall put the finishing touches on the decorations. McGonagall looked at her when she walked in.

"Wow, Mia. That's certainly a different look than previous years."

Hermione smiled. "I know. I was tired of doing the Renaissance look and decided to go for a Fallen Angel instead. Is it too much? I can still go change into last year's costume," she said in hopes that McGonagall would say that it was not appropriate.

McGonagall smiled. "No, it's fine. It's not to revealing. You really do look beautiful."

Hermione nodded to her in resignation. "I don't know why I let Ginny talk me into this. Really. Is this me?"

McGonagall laughed. "Mia, she's just trying to get you out of your shell. You're young; you deserve to—um, spread your wings a bit."

Hermione just rolled her eyes. Her eyes were drawn to the door, when Draco walked in. He was dressed in a Phantom of the Opera costume, complete with the mask that covered half his face. "Wow, Draco. I'm impressed. You are in a Muggle costume?"

Draco looked over a Hermione, stunned. _Merlin! She's gorgeous!_ His brain kicked back in when he realized that she was speaking to him. "Yes. I've come to enjoy a lot of forms of Muggle entertainment." He winked slightly at her.

Hermione saw his wink and blushed slightly. She didn't have time to say anything else, since the students began to arrive. She walked around the room, making sure that all the students were having fun.

After a couple of hours, she had taken a position by the refreshment table to watch the students interact. She turned her head when she felt someone walk up beside her.

"Hermione," said Draco. "You look amazing tonight. I'm astounded by your costume, but I do have to ask. What kind of angel are you?"

Hermione smirked. "I'm a Fallen Angel."

Draco, always one with a quick response, replied back, "Why did you fall from Heaven?"

Hermione was dumbstruck. "Honestly? I have no clue! Ginny picked out the costume for me. She said she was tired of my boring Halloween costumes."

Draco was about to reply back when he saw a seventh year try to slip some Firewhisky into the punch. He excused himself and walked up to the youth, who was in Slytherin. "You should know," he said, startling the young man. "The punch has a charm on it to prevent meddling. Also, if you were to put the alcohol in there, you would be turned into a cat for the remainder of the evening."

The student swallowed and quickly put the flask back into his costume. Draco smirked and turned back to where Hermione had been standing only to find her gone. He looked around the room, feeling disappointment.

When Draco walked away, Hermione took a deep breath and decided to leave. She was feeling a little tired and wanted to get some sleep before the meeting the next morning. She walked over to McGonagall and motioned to her that she was leaving.

McGonagall nodded. "Have a good night, Mia. I'll see you at the staff meeting in the morning.

* * *

Hermione and Draco arrived at the staff meeting the following morning at the same time. Draco greeted her. "Hi. Where did you go last night?"

Hermione smiled. "I was feeling tired, so I went back to my room to get some sleep." She didn't mention that she had not been sleeping well; dreams of her imprisonment haunted her dreams almost every night. She nodded her head to him when he held the door open for her. "Thanks."

They walked into the room and took their places at the table. Both had just settled into their seats when the rest of the staff walked in.

McGonagall took her place at the head of the table, with some trepidation. With a breath she called the meeting to order. "Before we get into the school business, I have some news from the Ministry."

Hermione looked at her mentor in alarm, noticing the unease in her voice. "What is it, Minerva?"

McGonagall exhaled. "The Ministry has passed a new law. It's a Marriage Law."

Hermione opened her eyes wide. "What? How can the ministry do that?" she almost shouted in surprise.

"The population decreased dramatically after the final battle with Voldemort. As a result, the Ministry invoked a medieval law that states that any unmarried or unengaged witch or wizard must be married. It originated after the Black Plague, when wizarding society was threatened with extinction."

"That's…that's…" Hermione trailed off, unable to articulate her thoughts.

"That's barbaric," growled Draco.

McGonagall nodded her agreement. "I know. I was unable to stop it. I just wanted to warn all of you. They are also choosing the couples." She held up her hand. "I don't know how the couples will be chosen, so don't ask me that. Now, I do believe we should move on since we do not have any more information on this subject. Anything urgent pending in regards to the students?"

The staff meeting continued in a subdued manner.

* * *

Hermione and the rest of the staff were understandably subdued the rest of the weekend. The shock and unease persisted into the following Monday morning. When the Owl Post came, Hermione was unsurprised to find a letter from the Ministry in it. With trepidation, she opened the letter.

"_Dear Ms. Granger,_

_The Ministry is implementing a new Marriage Law, which requires all witches and wizards between the ages of eighteen and fifty to be wed within the next year. The marriages will be arranged, using the Sorting Hat from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry to choose spouses for all magical people meeting this requirement, so that the marriages will be long lasting. If you are already married or if you have a fiancé, then you of course will be excluded. You must fill out the following paperwork if you and your fiancé wish to be excluded from the law. The paperwork must be returned no later than Thursday, October 31, or the pending marriage will be resolved._

_If you have no fiancé or are not already married, you must report to the Ministry on November 1 to find out who your pending fiancé will be. You will be given more details at that time._

_Congratulations on this happy occasion._

_Sincerely,_

_Isabelle Rutherford,_

_Ministress of Marriage"_

Hermione finished reading the letter in disgust. "Congratulations on the happy occasion!" She rolled her eyes as she snorted.

Beside her, Draco was having a similar reaction. "This is preposterous! How can they make us get married to someone who we might not even know?"

Hermione nodded. "I understand. But even I couldn't find a way out of it. I read every book that had to do with its medieval counterpart, but the only reason that it was abolished was that the population rebounded quickly."

Draco looked at Hermione, knowing that if she could not find a way out of the law, other than to be engaged, then there was no hope. "I don't know, Hermione. I think that our hands are tied. Is there anyone that you could arrange a marriage with before the deadline?"

Hermione shook her head, tears threatening to spill over. "No. Not since Ron died." She smiled a watery smile. "We were supposed to be married, you know? But he was killed in the final battle."

Draco felt bad, since he had brought up painful memories. "I know. He died killing my father."

At the mention of the man who continued to haunt her dreams, Hermione jumped up from the table and ran out of the Hall in tears.

_What did I say?_ Draco thought silently, watching her disappear.

* * *

**AN:**_Please Read and Review!_

_pstibbons - it was kinda a filler, but it was necessary._


	6. I Have to Marry WHO

6

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**___Many thanks to Axellia for betaing this!_

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**6. I have to marry who?**

On November 1, Hermione brushed her hair nervously. McGonagall had cancelled her and Draco's final class for the day, to allow them time to get to the Ministry. She had been brushing her hair for ten minutes, trying to calm herself down.

Taking a deep breath, she put the brush down and began to pace around her room. _Come on Hermione. You know that you have no choice in this. Why are you so nervous?_ She pondered that thought for a moment and decided that she was nervous because she was facing the unknown. This wasn't something that she could read in a book. This was going to make her finally overcome all of her fears and loss that she had suffered at the end of the war. Coming to this realization, she exhaled in defeat.

Taking one look around the room, she left and walked towards the Headmistress' office. She walked slowly, enjoying her last few minutes as a single person and noticed Draco walking just as slowly ahead of her. "Draco!" she called out.

Draco turned around at the sound of Hermione calling his name. "Hey. Getting ready to go to the Ministry?"

Hermione smiled. "Yeah. I don't want to. I just don't think that they can force us upon someone like that. It's frustrating."

Draco nodded his agreement. "I understand. What if I have to marry some awful woman who just wants my money?"

Hermione laughed and rolled her eyes. "At least you have something. What if I get saddled with an old coot who just wants a trophy wife?" She paused and then smirked. "Or worse. A Slytherin?"

Draco looked at her, about to defend his house, when he saw a twinkle in her eye. He decided not comment; he just stuck his tongue out at her.

Hermione started laughing. "Merlin it feels good to laugh." She grew contemplative. "I haven't laughed this hard in a long time."

Draco smiled, happy that he had brought a little happiness to her. Their conversation had taken them to the gargoyle in front of McGonagall's office. Each stood there, not wanting to go in, trying to put off the inevitable.

Finally, Hermione sighed and looked at Draco. "I'm a Gryffindor. I should be more courageous than this." Draco laughed as Hermione continued. She squared her shoulders and spoke the password, "Phoenix." The gargoyle jumped aside and both made their way up the stairs.

McGonagall smiled at them when they walked in. "Hermione, Draco. Are you preparing to go to the Ministry?" Both nodded sombrely. McGonagall looked at both of them. "You may use my Floo."

Hermione grabbed a pinch of Floo powder and soon she was standing in the midst of a bustling Ministry reception area. She heard Draco come out behind her. She didn't look at him; she just made her way to the reception area. "Excuse me, my name is Hermione Granger and I have an appointment with Isabelle Rutherford."

The receptionist looked up and smiled. "Of course. Here is your visitor's badge and you will need to go to level four." The receptionist smiled again and focused her attention on Draco. She gave him a once over and then her smiled turned brighter. "How may I help you, sir?"

Draco ignored the advances the woman was making. "Draco Malfoy. I also have an appointment with Isabelle Rutherford."

The receptionist smiled again and handing him his badge, her fingers lingering on his hand. Draco fought down the urge to scowl and politely thanked her.

"My pleasure. If you need any help at all, just let me know."

Hermione fought down the urge to giggle at the way the woman was blatantly throwing herself at him. When Draco turned around, she saw the irritation in his eyes. She decided to hold her tongue and both made their way across the floor.

Draco followed Hermione, muttering under his breath. _Merlin, I hope that the woman that I marry is not like that bint._ He shuddered at the thought as he studied the back of Hermione. _Now, she is more like it. Hermione is smart, beautiful and has a wicked right hook. She is the perfect woman. Not afraid to stand up for what she believes in and she doesn't treat me like a god._ The more he thought of it, the more he hoped that he was matched up with Hermione. He thought back to the dreams he had been having of her. _Don't think about it, Draco. Nothing can come of it. She believes I'm still that little git I was in school. There's no way that she would voluntarily marry me._

Draco sighed at the depressing thought and tried to direct his thoughts elsewhere. He was unsuccessful. Still thinking about Hermione, he took a seat in the waiting room.

Both waited impatiently until their names were called. Hermione went in first. She nervously sat in the chair provided as she looked at a striking woman in her mid-forties sitting across from her.

The woman spoke. "I am Ministress Rutherford. You must be Hermione Granger. It's a pleasure to meet you," she said as she extended her hand.

Hermione took her hand and replied, "I wish I could say the same. However, I do not agree with this new law and I am here against my free will."

Rutherford nodded. "I understand completely. However, this was not my choice. I advised the Minister that this policy was unnecessary and that the population would rebound on its own." She sighed. "Unfortunately, he did not listen to me. Now that the pleasantries are out of the way, will you please put on the hat? I must warn you, it may not give you an answer. It has been severely overworked today and has many names to review. It was decided this morning that everyone will received owls in a few days, naming their betrothed."

Hermione nodded and placed the hat on her head.

"_Hum. Miss Granger, what an unexpected surprise. Let's see now. You are very intelligent, courageous and loyal. Oh, dear. You have had a lot of heartache. Dear me, I don't seem to have met the perfect person for you yet, but don't worry dear girl, I'll find him."_

The hat magically removed itself from her head. Rutherford sighed. "I see that the hat has not found a match yet. What we will do is continue to see candidates and when the suitable person if found, we will send owls to both of you." She stood and Hermione followed her. "Have a pleasant day, Ms. Granger."

Hermione nodded and quickly left the room. She sighed in a combination of relief and dread. She was relieved to have the decision pushed back, but was dreading hearing the news. She sat back down and smiled wanly at Draco as he made his way into the room.

Draco sat down and looked at Rutherford. "Can we get this over with?" he asked.

Rutherford raised her eyebrows at his rudeness, but just gestured to the hat, which he placed on his head.

"_Aw, Mr. Malfoy. I'm not surprised to find you here. Let's see. You are very intelligent and have overcome many obstacles in your life. I see that you ended up taking a path of light, which I am happy to see. Hum. I do believe I have found your soul__ mate, however, she has yet to be informed."_ The hat then fluttered down.

Rutherford looked at Draco. "The hat has found your soul mate. You will be informed, by owl post, in a couple of days of who you're betrothed is. Have a pleasant day."

Draco just nodded to her and left the room without a word. When he got back into the waiting area, he nodded to Hermione. "Are you ready to go?"

Hermione nodded and together they made their way back to Hogwarts.

(BREAK)

Over the next day, Hermione was extremely nervous. She barely ate, usually only at the request of Neville, and sat in her room, lost in thought.

Most of her thoughts centred on Ron, on the love that they shared. _Oh, Ron. I miss you so much. Even when we were fighting, you made me feel alive. Ever since you died, I feel like half a person. I hope that wherever you are, you're happy._ It was in this train of melancholy thought that McGonagall found her on Sunday morning.

Hermione heard the knock on her door and sighed. She thought that it was Neville, trying to get her to come out of her room. She slowly made her way to the door and opened it. To her surprise, McGonagall was standing outside. "Minerva? Are you here to drag me out of my room?"

McGonagall smiled a smile that did not reach her eyes. "No, Mia. I'm here because you got an owl from the Ministry. I thought that you would like to open it in private."

Hermione sucked in breath and looked at the letter with trepidation. With shaking fingers, she took it from McGonagall and sat back down in her chair. McGonagall sat across from her.

Slowly, Hermione opened the letter and began to read.

"_Dear Ms. Granger,_

_The sorting hat has found your perfect match. This person is the one man with whom the hat has found to be your soul mate. Your new fiancé is Draco Malfoy."_

Hermione read the name and felt all the blood drain out of her face. In shock, she dropped the letter and passed out.

(BREAK)

Down in the dungeons, Draco was reading his letter as well.

"_Dear Mr. Malfoy,_

_The sorting hat has found your perfect match. This person is the one woman with whom the hat has found to be your soul mate. Your new fiancée is Hermione Granger. _

_While, it was the intent with the policy to have all witches and wizards married by June, we at the ministry do understand that since both of you have teaching positions at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, this will be impossible for you. So we are extending the timeframe for your consideration. You must be married by 1 September, 2005._

_Have a pleasant day and congratulations on your upcoming nuptials._

_Sincerely,_

_Isabelle Rutherford_

_Ministress of Marriage"_

Draco finished reading the letter and smiled in surprise. _This is a pleasant surprise. I like Hermione. She's not some silly bint who will just get excited about marrying a Malfoy. She will challenge my mind._ Draco smiled. _Not to mention that she is gorgeous._ He thought about how much Hermione had grown up and felt his body's natural reaction. Smiling, he decided to go see his betrothed and quickly made his way to his bathroom, to get ready.

Back in Hermione's room, McGonagall withdrew a Pepper-up Potion from her robes. She had anticipated this reaction and slowly poured the potion down her throat. Slowly, Hermione awoke, blinking slowly. When her brain finally began working, she looked up at her mentor, tears forming in her eyes.

"Minerva, why? Why him?" She began to sob uncontrollably, as McGonagall wrapped her in her arms.

McGonagall thought for a moment before deciding to answer her. "My dear," she began. "Draco is not his father. He is a handsome, intelligent man, whom with you can have a wonderful life. Maybe he is the one person that can help you overcome your fears."

Hermione got angry at that point and pulled herself out of the older woman's arms. "Overcome my fears? Minerva, we are not talking about a fear of heights. His father brutally raped me. Repeatedly. He beat me until I couldn't see. Not only that, but he used Legilimency to brutally rape my mind. How in the bloody hell am I supposed to overcome that with his _son?_"

"Dear, he is a good man. He will help you."

Hermione just stared at her mentor in disbelief. She felt iciness settle around her heart. "I think you should leave, now." She walked to the door and held it open for her mentor, who walked through without a word.

McGonagall turned to say something, but Hermione just shut the door.

(BREAK)

**AN:**_ Wow. That was a wonderful response to last chapter! I will let you know, that I am also posting this on adultfanfictiondotnet due to the fact that it gets a bit graphic in chapter 15._

_LosingTrack - Thanks! I'm glad you like it!_

_Crystal Stardust - I'm not really sure and I hesitate to put an estimate down, but for you, I will. I just wrote chapter 15 which is when Hermione comes clean to Draco. I'll estimate that it will be at least 25-30 chapters, but could (depending on my muse) go well over that. Thanks for the review!_

_Bella1992 - Thanks! I'm glad you like it!_

_Hotkat144 - Thanks! I'm glad you like it!_

_quibbler149 - Here you go. I'm trying to update on Thursday's, but it might be Friday's when I update. Thanks!_

_mhaj78 - I'm flattered! I'll admit, I did start putting it up on adutlfanfiction after writing 15 when I realized how graphic it was going to get. I'm just not comfortable posting that type of thing here. So I will warn everyone when the explict chapter is coming up so that those who are of age to read it can! I will be posting the "clean" version of it here! Thank you for the wonderful review. I really do strive to write well and thankfully I have a wonderful beta who keeps my muse in line!_

_Mark - Yup. Chapter 4 was kinda of filler, but I think it was important to show how Draco was received since the 7th years would remember him and his bullying! I'm pretty sure that Luna survived, but I'd have to reread it to make sure. The couples will be revealed in chapter 8, I've got some drama planned for 7, so you'll have to wait!_


	7. Courting and Hexes

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN: **_Here's the next chappie! Thanks to everyone who read and reviewed! Many thanks to Axellia for being my beta!_

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**7. Courting and Hexes**

Draco walked towards Hermione's rooms, his steps light. He actually smiled at a couple of the passing students, who looked at him as though stunned at his happiness. The closer he got to her quarters, the more nervous he grew. He thought over the previous months and realized how close they had become. She was the closest friend that he had.

Gathering his courage, he stood in front of her door, preparing to knock. He raised and lowered his hand multiple times until he finally pushed himself to make the step. Softly, he knocked, with no response. He knocked again, a little harder. Finally, he heard someone making their way to the door.

When Hermione opened the door, he was shocked at her appearance. She was dishevelled and her eyes were red and puffy from crying.

Hermione opened the door, to see Draco standing there. She missed the look of concern that entered his eyes at the sight of her. "What do you want, Malfoy?"

Draco drew back at the malice in her voice. "Malfoy? Since when do you call me that?"

"I am not in the mood. What do you want?"

Draco narrowed his eyes. "Is it wrong to want to talk to my betrothed?"

Hermione felt the rage boil up in her at his declaration. "I will not marry you, Malfoy. I don't care what the Ministry says. I will not do it." She began to shut the door, but Draco stuck his hand out and prevented it.

"I don't think that this is a conversation that you want to have in a hallway, Hermione. Please," he said with a pleading look in his eyes. "Please, let me come in."

Hermione drew a breath, trying to control her anger. He kept begging her with his eyes until she relented. Slowly, she opened the door wide enough to let him in. She walked across the room and settled back into the chair she had been sitting in. "What makes you think that you can convince me, ferret boy?"

Draco felt a little anger stir in him at her comment. "Ferret boy? I haven't been that git in a long time. Don't you realize how much I've changed?"

Hermione snorted in derision. "Just because you managed to convince the Ministry that you're innocent, what makes you believe that _I'll_ believe it? You're the reason that Dumbledore is dead."

"No, I'm not. The Dark Lord had a little something to do with that. He's the one who made me choose. I at least bought my mother some more time." He saw Hermione's look at disbelief. "Look. I don't want to start out a marriage with any secrets. Do you know why I had to attack Professor Dumbledore that year?"

Hermione thought about it. She realized that he was not going to go away until he tried to convince her to marry him. She chose to remain silent, and hoped that he would give up.

Draco took her silence as an invitation to begin his story. "Fine. The story begins during our fifth year. After Father failed to retrieve the prophecy, the Dark Lord was extremely angry. He ordered Bella to bring both me and Mother to him." Draco rolled his eyes. "I, being the stupid, power seeking git that I was, was ecstatic. I went willingly and when he requested a private meeting with me, went happily. It was only in that meeting that my life changed forever." He paused for a moment, trying to gather his thoughts.

Hermione looked at Draco; astonished about how he was describing the boy he used to be. Against her better judgment, she felt herself being pulled into the story. "What happened?" she asked quietly.

Draco laughed a hollow laugh. "He told me that if I did not kill Dumbledore than my mother would be tortured and then murdered in front of me. He said it would take her days to die and it would be worse than the _Cruciatus_ curse." He shrugged his shoulders. "It was then that I knew he was absolutely mad. I tried to find a way out of it. I knew that I could not go to Dumbledore, for then the Dark Lord would read it in my mind. Snape was a good option, but I wasn't sure how much I could trust him. So I began to plan. I tried to make it so that I couldn't succeed. I wanted to give Mother the time she needed to escape his wrath. It was all for nothing."

Hermione detected a note of deep sorrow in his last statement and following her instincts, she moved towards him. She placed her hand under his chin and lifted his eyes so that she could look into them. As soon as they made eye contact, she felt herself fall into his silver orbs. She saw pain, regret and a deep self loathing in his eyes that made her want to wrap her arms around him and try to give him comfort. Holding herself back she just said, "I'm sorry. He killed her anyway, didn't he?"

Draco nodded. "I changed that year. I knew that everything that I had done to Potter was coming back to haunt me. Payback is a bitch, you know."

Hermione managed to chuckle at that. "It's not payback. It's war." She smiled as a thought came to her. "You know, there was this American general in the 1800's who made the most famous quote. War is hell. I think that he was right. Don't blame yourself; you made the most of a bad situation." She sighed as she turned and walked back to her chair. "I still can't marry you, Draco. I just…I just can't. I'm going to speak to Isabelle Rutherford tomorrow." She sat in the chair, staring at the floor, unable to meet his eyes.

Draco felt like his heart was being ripped out. "Why? I like you. You challenge me and I know for a fact you wouldn't let me become a git."

Hermione felt tears well up in her eyes. "I have my reasons." She kept staring at the floor, unable to look him in the eyes.

Draco followed her earlier lead and walked over to her. He grasped her chin lightly, noticing her slight flinch at the contact. "Tell me. Please." He looked deep into her eyes, trying to figure out her secrets.

Hermione shook her head. "No. I can't. Please, Draco. I just want to be alone right now. Please, leave."

Draco felt some anger at her words. "Why? I just told you my biggest secret. Why shouldn't you do me the same honour?"

Hermione looked at him, her anger coming back. "Just because you chose to tell me that doesn't me that I am obligated to tell you my secrets, Malfoy. Those are mine and mine alone to share with whomever I please." She pushed him away from her and walked towards the door. She opened it. "Please leave now," she growled.

Draco drew in a breath and decided to quit while he was ahead. "Fine. This doesn't mean that I'm going to let this go, Hermione. Before we get married, you will tell me what's bothering you." With those parting words, he walked out of her room.

Hermione sat down after he had left guilt and regret washing over her. _I'm sorry, Draco. That will never happen._

-----------------------------------

The next day, Hermione was sombre as she walked into the Ministry. She picked up her visitor's badge and walked up to Isabelle's office. She waited patiently while her name was called.

When she walked into the office, Isabelle smiled and extended her hand. "Ms. Granger. This is an unexpected surprise. What can I do to help you?"

Hermione drew in a breath. "I can not marry Draco Malfoy. Please, can I do anything to change that?"

Isabelle looked at the younger woman. "I'm sorry, all betrothals are final."

"Please," Hermione said pleadingly. "I can't marry him. Surely there is something that you can do to change that."

"I'm sorry. What's done is done. The Sorting Hat has made its decision and I can not change that."

Hermione felt her eyes feel with tears as the fear swelled in her heart. "You don't understand. I fought his father during the war. I do not have pleasant memories of that and he looks exactly like him."

Isabelle drew in a breath, feeling sympathy for the girl. "Look, Ms. Granger. I can't change it. I'm truly sorry, but you must marry Draco Malfoy within the next year or you will be stripped of your wand."

Hermione felt broken, knowing that she had nothing to go back to in the Muggle world. Silently, she stood up and walked out of the room. Instead of going back to Hogwarts, she decided to walk around Muggle London and try to see if she could find another solution.

Her first stop was to Diagon Alley, so that she could change her money to pounds. Once that was completed, taking great care to avoid the twin's joke shop, she made her way through the Leaky Cauldron and into Muggle London.

She walked around for hours, not really seeing where she was going, just lost in thoughts. Her heart felt heavy at having to spend the rest of her life with a man that reminded her of horrible things. _I know Draco is a decent and caring man, but every time I look at him, I see is father staring back at me. How am I supposed to live with that? It will drive me mad._

She heard a crack of thunder and then the cold drops of rain as a downpour began. She lifted her face up, so that she was staring at the clouds. _This fits my mood perfectly,_ she thought. She felt the cold rain washing away her tears as her hair became plastered to her head. As she brought her focus back to her surroundings, she realized that she was looking at the London Eye. She smiled a bit, remembering the day the previous summer that Ginny and she had brought the twins there. She sat down on a bench and bent her head in sorrow.

This was how, Ginny had found her.

Hermione heard the unmistakable sound of an Apparation behind her, but didn't look up. She didn't look up until she felt a soft touch on her arm.

"Merlin, Hermione. You're freezing!" exclaimed Ginny. "Come on; let's get you back to the Burrow."

Hermione just nodded and together, she and Ginny Apparated back to her home. Molly was waiting for them.

"Mia, dear. Come on; let's get you into some dry clothes." The concerned mother turned to her daughter. "Ginny? Will you make some hot tea up for her?" Ginny nodded and made her way to the kitchen.

Within moments, Molly had the depressed woman sitting at a table and was forcing the hot tea down her throat. She sighed, knowing that Hermione needed to talk about her feelings. "Mia, dear. What's wrong? Minerva flooed earlier and said that you had not gone back to Hogwarts after your meeting with Isabelle Rutherford."

Ginny sat across from Hermione, knowing that her best friend needed to finally come clean with what was bothering her. "Hermione, please talk to me. I'm your best friend. Please let me help you."

Hermione lifted her head and stared at Ginny, her eyes lifeless. "The Marriage Law. I have to marry Draco Malfoy."

Molly's quick breath in showed her distress. "Oh, dear."

Ginny was confused. "I know you don't like the man, Hermione. I can't blame you since he's a git, but why did that cause this reaction?"

Hermione looked at her. "I should have told you this a long time ago, Ginny. You remember when I was captured by Death Eaters?" At Ginny's nod, she continued. "Lucius Malfoy was one of my main torturers. He raped me repeatedly." Hermione felt tears well up in her eyes again as Ginny gasped in horror.

"Oh, Merlin. Mia, why didn't you tell me?"

"I was ashamed," came the quiet answer.

"That's nothing to be ashamed about. You can't control other people! Now I see why you are so distressed about the marriage."

"Yeah. It's not that Draco is a bad person. In fact, if it weren't for his father, I wouldn't mind marrying him. He has changed completely. But every time I look at him, I still see his father standing over me." Hermione lost control and began to sob in earnest again.

Ginny got up from the table and walked around to Hermione and wrapped her arms around the sobbing woman. She didn't say anything, she just offered her comfort.

After an hour, Hermione had calmed down enough to begin to think reasonably again. "I asked Isabelle Rutherford if I could marry anyone else, but she said no. I don't know what to do."

Ginny, who was still stroking her hair softly, thought for a moment. "I don't know either. I do know that you need to get back to Hogwarts. McGonagall was really worried about you."

Hermione nodded and stood. "Thanks, Ginny. Thanks, Molly. I'm sorry that I didn't tell you all this sooner, Gin. I wasn't ready to face it." She turned towards the fireplace and got a pinch of Floo powder. With one look back at her concerned best friend, she threw the powder into the fire and shouted, "Hogwarts, Headmistress office." She stepped into the green flames and disappeared.

-----------------------------------

McGonagall looked up in surprise as Hermione stepped out of the flames. "Mia! You're alright!"

Hermione looked at her mentor. "Yes. I'm sorry that I worried you, but I needed some time to think."

McGonagall looked at her, understanding some of the pain she was in. "Understandable, my dear. I'm glad that Molly was able to find you."

Hermione nodded. "I'm going to head off to bed and try to get some rest."

"Good night, Mia. Pleasant dreams."

Hermione rolled her eyes once she was out of sight. _Pleasant dreams. If only I could have some._ She walked quickly back to her quarters where she took a hot shower and then snuggled under the covers. She stared up at the ceiling, her mind refusing to stop working, so she opened up her nightstand. She still had some Dreamless Sleep potion. A few minutes after she swallowed the potion, she was fast asleep.

When Hermione awoke the next morning, she felt horrible. Her head was stuffed up and she couldn't stop sneezing. "Oh," she groaned. She tried to sit up in bed, but her head spun at the sudden movement. "Crap. That's perfect. Now I'm sick. Can anything else go wrong?"

Just as the words were out of her mouth, there was a knock on her doors. She groggily called out, "Come in."

"Hermione?" called out Draco.

"Damn it," she muttered. She tried to get up, but found she lacked the energy. "In the bedroom," she yelled.

Draco walked in, to find her struggling to sit up. "Hermione? Are you okay?"

She rolled her eyes. "Perfect. Just perfect." She gave up her struggle and lay back down.

Draco walked over to her bed, concern lining his face. He put a hand on her forehead. "Dear Merlin. You're burning up. That's it. I'm taking you to Pomfrey."

"No. I don't want to go. I got myself into this mess, I'll get myself out."

"Hermione," he said in exasperation. "You are sick. You need to go to the hospital wing." He quickly pulled the covers off of her and bent down to pick her up.

"Don't touch me," she said half heartedly.

Draco ignored her and picked her up and began to walk towards her door.

"Wait! I need to at least get dressed."

"I'm not leaving you alone. You are too weak too sit up in bed; how in Merlin's name do you expect to get dressed?"

"I'll manage," she growled.

Draco set her back down and then called out, "Dobby?"

The little elf appeared. "Yes, Master Draco?"

"Hermione is sick, but she wants to get dressed before going to see Madame Pomfrey. Can you help her?"

"Of course. Anything for Miss Hermione." The little elf looked at Hermione and began to help her get dressed as Draco left the room.

Thirty minutes later, Draco carried as subdued Hermione into the hospital wing. Madame Pomfrey noticed their arrival and quickly came over. "What happened?"

Draco looked down at Hermione and realized that she had fallen asleep. "I don't know. I went to her quarters this morning and found her too weak to sit up. I felt her forehead and she is burning up."

Madame Pomfrey quickly took her temperature. "You're right; it's a couple of degrees over normal. Let me examine her."

The Mediwitch quickly examined her. "Well, it looks like she managed to get pneumonia. She's going to get worse before she gets better. I'd better let the Headmistress know, so that she can get someone to teach her classes for a week or two."

Draco nodded, feeling protective. "I'll stay her with her, while you let Professor McGonagall know."

Madame Pomfrey nodded. "Good. She'll need someone she knows here. She's likely to be very incoherent." The Mediwitch then left the ward.

Draco sat quietly by her bedside, as her fever increased. He held her hand, stroking it softly and when she began to whimper, he murmured to her that everything was going to be alright.

Hermione, in the grip of a fever induced nightmare, awoke at the sound of his voice. "NO!" she screamed and then grabbed for her wand, which was not there. Lost in the nightmare, she didn't realize that it was Draco and not Lucius standing over her. "Get away from me!"

"Hermione? It's okay. You're sick and in the hospital wing."

His quiet words didn't penetrate the fear that the nightmare had invoked and when he leaned over her, to lay a cool rag on her forehead, she thought he was going to attack her. "Stupify!" she yelled and Draco flew back from the bed into a wall, where he was knocked out. Her fear had overridden her need for a wand.

Casting the wandless spell had cost her most of her energy and she passed out again.

* * *

**AN:**_ Wow, what a great response to the last chapter!_

_mhaj78 - Yeah. I want to make sure that I can still update if my muse goes on vacation again! I am going to try to start 16 this weekend, but I'm sick with the flu right now, so that might not happen._

_LosingTrack - I'm still updating weekly, although when I finish the story, I might update sooner. Thanks for the review!_

_seara rain - Thanks! Depending on whether I can convince my muse to get this story completed, I might start updating more frequently. I just don't want to upload what I have and then have my muse desert me again. I can promise for at least a weekly update._

_Hotkat144 - Not yet. As of this chapter, the only people that know (that are still alive since both Harry and Ron knew) are Minerva, Molly and Ginny. Draco finds out in chapter 15. Thanks for the review!_

_Bella1992 - Of course he does. He bares part of his soul to her, but she still can't wrap her head around it. She will eventually come to terms with it, though. Thanks!_

_crystal stardust - She is, yes, but she's never really talked a lot about what happened to her at the hands of the Death Eaters, so she pretty much closed herself off. Hopefully, Draco can help her overcome that. Thanks for the review!_


	8. Explanations

8

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**___Here's the next chappie!! Thanks to all who reviewed. As always, please R&R. My muse loves the attention._

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**8. Explanations**

When Draco awoke, he found himself lying in a hospital bed. He groaned groggily as he realized that Hermione had stupefied him without a wand. _Merlin, I never want to piss her off when she _has_ her wand!_

His groan had alerted Madame Pomfrey to his now alert status and she bustled over to him. "Mister Malfoy. Are you okay?"

Draco sighed inwardly at the obvious question, but decided to answer her anyway. "Other than a splitting headache and a new appreciation for wandless magic, yes, I'm fine."

The Mediwitch smiled at his jab. "What exactly happened?"

"Hermione was having a nightmare. I reached over to her to put a cold rag on her head and she yelled out the stunning spell and I flew across the room. That's the last thing I remember."

Madame Pomfrey nodded. "I'm shocked to hear that she managed that spell while completely unaware. I didn't believe that it was possible."

Draco nodded his head slightly, the pain still persistent. "She isn't the brightest witch of her age for nothing." He groaned softly as another surge of pain hit him.

Madame Pomfrey heard his gasp and quickly grabbed a pain potion. "Here you go. This should stop your head from hurting."

Draco gratefully swallowed the potion and the effect was almost immediate. The pain in his head slowly decreased until it was gone. Sighing in relief, he walked over to Hermione's bed. She looked less feverish and was sleeping deeply. She looked peaceful, unlike the Hermione that Draco was used to seeing. "How is she?"

Madame Pomfrey sighed. "I gave her a potion for her fever, so that has decreased. She is sleeping deeply and hopefully that is giving her body a chance to heal. It's all up to her now. Why don't you go back to your quarters? You should be able to resume your classes tomorrow. Professor McGonagall is temporarily taking over Ms. Granger's classes until she is well again."

Draco nodded and reluctantly left the hospital wing. He was still trying to puzzle out what Hermione had been dreaming about that caused her to hex him. He kept going over it in his mind, trying to fit the pieces of the puzzle together, but nothing was coming to his mind. Frustrated, that evening he decided to ask McGonagall about it.

He walked towards her office and bumped into her coming down her stairs. "Professor!"

"Yes, Draco."

"I have a question. Hermione was in the middle of a nightmare when she stunned me. Do you have any idea what her dream would have been about?"

McGonagall sighed, knowing that Draco would be asking tough questions. She decided to answer with the truth, but without revealing the woman's secrets. "Yes, I know what the nightmare was about, but it's up to her to reveal her secrets to you." She looked at the younger man, wanting to give him a warning about what he was to face. "I must warn you, she has had to endure some terrible things. Be patient with her, Draco. She doesn't trust easily." With her warning imparted, she turned from the stairway and continued on her journey.

Draco watched her walkway, not really understanding her meaning. He turned back towards his quarters, trying to solve the mystery in his mind.

(BREAK)

The next day, Draco was frustrated not to be able by Hermione's side. Thankfully, Madame Pomfrey had offered to give him regular updates, so that kept his frustration down to a manageable level. He was still extremely relieved when his last class was over.

He rushed to the hospital wing and found Hermione still sleeping. He looked, concerned, at Madame Pomfrey. "Shouldn't she have woken up by now?"

The Mediwitch smiled. "Normally, I would say yes, but her reserves have severely been depleted. She might awaken today or it could take a couple of days. I'm fairly certain that it will take close to a month for her to completely recover."

Draco looked at the Mediwitch. "Why are her reserves so depleted?"

Madame Pomfrey looked at him, regret in her eyes. "That's for her to tell you."

That was the last straw for Draco. "Damn it! Why in the bloody hell won't anyone tell me about my fiancée? She is obviously sick and dealing with personal problems! Why won't you tell me what's wrong?" he exploded.

Madame Pomfrey looked at him. "Mr. Malfoy, please contain yourself. I understand that you are frustrated, but I can not break a confidence. I believe that if you will be patient, then Ms. Granger might tell you what's going on."

Draco looked down, ashamed that he had lost his temper. "I'm sorry I yelled at you."

The Mediwitch smiled and left him alone. He pulled a chair up to Hermione's bed and sat down. He looked at the sleeping woman and picked up her hand. "Hermione," he said. "It's Draco. I wish I knew what was going on with you. I want to help you, but you're going to have to let me in." He sighed and began to softly stroke her hand, unconsciously.

He sat there for an hour, just holding her hand, and then he felt her hand move. He looked at her face, he noticed her eyelids fluttering. "Hermione?"

"Draco?" she rasped.

"Yeah. How are you feeling?"

"Awful. What happened?"

Draco smiled. "Trust you to get right to the point. I came into your room and you were sick, so I brought you to the hospital wing. Madame Pomfrey said that you have pneumonia."

Hermione squinted as she opened her eyes. "Oh. What time is it?"

"Dinnertime on Wednesday. You slept the majority of yesterday."

Hermione just looked at him, a feeling edging towards her conscious. "Did we argue yesterday?"

Draco looked away from her, not sure he wanted to embark on her nightmare when she had just woken up. He drew in a breath and tried to temporize. "Not really, you weren't really awake. Although remind me never to make you mad again."

Hermione looked into his eyes and realized that he was trying hard not to say something. She opened her mouth to ask him what was wrong, when Madame Pomfrey came in.

"Hermione! You're awake." Madame Pomfrey quickly brought over a potion. "Here you go. It's a Pepper Up potion. It should help you get back on your feet. I must warn you, it will be a long recovery due to your recent…difficulties."

Hermione nodded her understanding. "I know." She took the potion that the witch offered her and quickly drank it. She felt an immediate effect from the potion and with more energy sat up. The Mediwitch smiled at her and then bustled back to her office, wanting to give the couple time.

"Hermione?" asked Draco. "What happened Monday?"

Hermione sighed. "I went to see Isabelle Rutherford. She refused my petition, so I guess the wedding's on." She sighed again, this time in resignation.

Draco looked at her with uneasiness in his eyes. "Would it really be so bad to marry me? I'm nothing like my father," he asked softly.

Hermione closed her eyes at the mention of Lucius and felt an icy fear surround her heart. "I know, but…"

"But what?"

Hermione opened her eyes. They were filled with pain, fear and an emotion that Draco did not recognize. "I'm not ready to tell you that. Can you give me time? This isn't easy for me."

Draco thought for a moment, going over the conversations he'd had in the previous days. Finally, he nodded. "I can. Just let me know when you are ready. How did you end up sick?"

Hermione managed to laugh weakly. "I was stupid. After talking to Rutherford, I walked around London in the cold rain. I should have known better."

Draco smiled. "I expected more from the brightest witch of our age. But then again, I can't complain since I got to hold you in my arms."

Hermione blushed bright red at his insinuation. She lowered her eyes and stared down at their entwined hands.

Draco noticed her shyness and gently raised her head, so that he was staring into her eyes. "I know you need time, but how about we go on a real date. Say the first Hogsmeade weekend in two weeks?"

Hermione thought for a moment and knew that it was going to take a series of small steps to try to overcome her fear. She felt encouraged that he was willing to give her space. She looked into his eyes and smiled. "It's a date."

-(BREAK)

The following day, Hermione was going stir crazy, cooped up in the hospital ward. She had reread her new copy of _Hogwarts: A History_ from cover to cover and had been reduced to doodling on a piece of parchment that Madame Pomfrey had given her. She was sighing in boredom at lunchtime when Neville walked in.

"Neville!" she exclaimed in excitement. "How are you?"

Neville smiled. "I'm good. It's nice to see that you are feeling better. I heard that you have to marry Malfoy."

Hermione nodded. "Yeah. I'm still trying to process that. Who are you going to marry?"

Neville smiled. "Luna Lovegood."

Hermione smiled, remembering how well the two had worked together in her and Neville's fifth year. "Really? Good for you. I think that she is perfect for you."

Neville blushed. "Yeah. She's a little odd, but she's very nice."

Hermione laughed, remembering the younger girl's penchant for saying the most outrageous things. "Do you know who else got betrothed?"

Neville shook his head. "I have no idea. I've been so busy trying to grow the Louisiana plant that I haven't even looked at most of my post."

"Oh," Hermione said in disappointment. "I really want to hear what everyone has to say." Just as she said that she was interrupted by Ginny and the twins.

"Aunt Mia!" Both children ran over to her and gave her a hug. "Are you sick, Aunt Mia?" asked Jamie.

"Yes, Jamie. I am."

"Why?"

Hermione smiled, used to the children's unending questions. "Because I was very stupid and walked around in the cold rain without an umbrella."

"Oh. Why?"

Ginny decided to take matters into her own hands before they were caught up in a never ending set of why's. "That's not your business, young man."

Jamie nodded slightly at the rebuke. Ginny conjured up a colouring book for both kids and set them on the floor to play.

"Hi, Ginny," said Neville.

Ginny smiled. "Hi, Neville. I hear you and Luna are engaged. Congratulations!"

"Thanks." Neville got up. "I'd better go back to my classes. I'll see you later, Mia."

"Bye, Neville. Thanks for coming by." Hermione turned her attention to Ginny. "Okay. What's going on?"

Ginny laughed. "Nothing. I figured that you would be going stir crazy once McGonagall told us that you were confined to the hospital wing." Her expression turned serious. "How are you?"

Hermione smiled. "Coping. It helps that Draco has been nothing but sweet. He's the one that brought me to the hospital wing. I was obviously was very sick since I don't remember anything until waking yesterday."

Ginny raised her eyebrows. "You don't remember hexing him?"

"I hexed him?" Hermione asked in confusion.

Ginny nodded her head. "McGonagall said that you were having a nightmare and he reached across to lay a cool cloth on your forehead. You Stupefied him."

"I did what!" she exclaimed. "Why didn't he tell me?"

Ginny shrugged her shoulders. "Have no clue."

Hermione tried to digest that information, but decided to move the conversation away from her. "So?"

Ginny looked confused. "So what?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Who are you marrying?"

"Oh, that." Ginny tried to draw out the suspense. "Well…"

"Ginny, if you don't tell me, I will hex you into next year."

Ginny laughed. "It's good to hear the old Hermione again."

"Ginny," Hermione growled.

"Fine. Fine. I'm marrying Lee Jordan."

"Really?"

Ginny blushed. "Yeah. We went out on a date Sunday night. I can honestly say that it was one of the best dates that I've ever had. We just connected. We talked for hours and he even doesn't mind about the twins. Actually, he was rather excited about the twins." Ginny and Hermione laughed.

"That's good to hear," said Hermione. "What about Fred and George?"

"Angelina Johnson and Katie Bell, respectively." Ginny shrugged her shoulders. "I hope that they know what they are getting into. The twins can be a little…I don't know the word."

"Rambunctious?" asked Hermione.

"Yeah. That explains them perfectly. I really hope that they can put up with them."

Hermione looked at Ginny. "So how is Molly doing trying to plan three weddings?"

"Four." Ginny rolled her eyes at Hermione's look of confusion. "Come on, Mia. Did you honestly believe that Mum was not going to try to plan your wedding, too?"

Hermione shook her head. "I honestly didn't even think of that. At least I don't have to marry him until before the next school year. It gives me time to work on my issues. But, I don't want to talk about that now. What kind of wedding do you want?"

Ginny smiled and the two women began to talk about her upcoming wedding.

(BREAK)

**AN:**_ Remember to R&R! My muse loves it!!_

_mhaj78 - Yeah, 8 chapters until he finds out (to give you a timeline, he finds out after Christmas). I did nothing but sleep for 4 day and I feel a little better (of course, the meds that the doctor gave me had something to do with that!), but now my work load has tripled and I'm back to working about 60 hours a week. Glad you liked the chapter!_

_Bella1992 - I feel really bad for him, too! Thanks for the review!_

_Hotkat144 - I promise, it'll go by quickly! There's some really great fluff in there. Thanks for the review!_

_Cheated Of Between - I promise, better emotions are coming up. She's repressing them at the moment, but when the gates break open, it's full on angst. Don't worry about the criticism! I love it. I love anything that helps to make me a better writer! Trust me, I understand about some of the fanfiction out there. I feel your pain (even though I don't read HP a lot, I most read CSI: NY). The hat did see the memories, but Draco is the person that is going to help her overcome said memories, so it had a reason for putting them together! Don't worry about being cynical! Thanks for the review!!_

_LosingTrack - Thanks for the review!!_

_crystal stardust - Yes, he is. He's not taking it very well either...But they will have to overcome it. Thanks!_


	9. The First Date

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**_Here's the next chappie!! Thanks to all who reviewed. As always, please R&R. My muse loves the attention._

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**9. The First Date**

A week after Hermione was confined to the hospital wing she was allowed to continue teaching her classes. Madame Pomfrey warned her about doing too much and told her that she would confine her to the hospital wing again if she overworked. Hermione took the advice with a pinch of salt.

She was careful when she taught not to move around too much and with many thanks to the house elves, ate in her room. As the time drew closer to her and Draco's first date, the more nervous she got.

To try to ease some of her nervousness, she sent owls to Ginny everyday. Most of them were about mundane topics, but some encroached on serious subjects like their upcoming weddings and Hermione's fear. She had just finished her dinner on the Friday before the date when an owl arrived. Smiling, she opened it.

"_Hermione,_

_I know that you are so nervous right now. You don't know what to wear, what you're going to say, so I'm going to give you some advice._

_First, what to wear. Girl, you are gorgeous! Show it off. Don't wear your witch's robes. Try a pair of jeans, a sweater (preferable the green one that I got you for Christmas last year) and your black boots._

_Second, what to say. Just be yourself! I know that there is attraction between you two, so just let it simmer naturally. Get to know each other. Likes, dislikes, etcetera. Don't talk about the war. If you go there, then you'll have to tell him. Just keep everything light!_

_Finally, take a deep breath and relax. Have fun!_

_Ginny._

_PS. I expect an Owl on Sunday telling me what happened!"_

Hermione laughed as she finished the letter, realizing that Ginny truly was her best friend. With one letter, she had managed to alleviate some of the nervousness that Hermione was feeling.

Hermione set the letter aside and sat back in her chair and thought over Ginny's advice. She decided that the younger woman was right and began to plan her outfit.

* * *

On the same night, Draco was having similar nervous feelings. After he finished dinner in the Great Hall, he slowly patrolled the corridors, looking for students out after curfew. He chose to use this time to think over the letter he had received from Ginny this morning.

She had told him that if he hurt Hermione, she would hex away his family jewels. He believed her after being at the receiving end of a Bat Bogey hex from her. He thought back over the previous five years at how much he had changed. _You're not the same annoying stuck up git that you were five years ago. You've learned humility. You know that she is the one woman out there that can challenge you. She's smart, funny and bloody beautiful, too._

He smiled at the last thought. _Yes, Hermione Granger has grown up,_ he thought. Just the thought of how she had changed was having a physical reaction on him. He looked down at his traitorous body and groaned, knowing that he would need to get himself under control by the next day.

He smiled, knowing that he was getting his heart's desire. Slowly, he walked back to his quarters to get some sleep.

* * *

The next morning, both of them awoke with butterflies in their stomachs. Draco was able put them at the back of his mind since he was supervising the students going to Hogsmeade.

Hermione wasn't so lucky. She lounged around in her room, reading all of her books to try to put her nervousness in the back of her mind. For lack of a better way to ease her mind, she finally sought out Professor McGonagall.

The professor looked up in surprise as Hermione walked into her office. "Mia? Is everything okay?"

Hermione took a breath. "No. I'm so nervous. I have my first date with Draco today, and I don't know what to do. It feels like I am betraying Ron." She looked at McGonagall then, her confusion evident in her eyes.

McGonagall sat back, not sure how to comfort the woman. Finally, she lifted her eyes to her. "How are you betraying Ron? I know that you were in love with him, but he's been gone five years, Mia. He would want you to move on with your life."

Hermione responded, "But with _Malfoy?_"

McGonagall smiled. "Granted, he would not be your first choice, but I think that he is a good choice. He will challenge you intellectually and there is some attraction there." She held up her hand when Hermione went to negate that fact. "Look at how you two fight. It's repressed emotions. Trust me on this."

Hermione closed her mouth, understanding what her mentor was saying. "Okay. He is handsome and I do find his mind stimulating, but what about my flashbacks?"

McGonagall took a breath. "I do believe that he may be the one person that can help you overcome your fears." She smiled at the younger girl. "Look. You two are going to Hogsmeade, right?" At Hermione's nod, she continued. "Why don't you go get dressed? The children will be coming back soon."

Hermione sighed. "You're right. As much as I hate to admit it, you're right. Ginny basically told me what I have to wear, and to get the look that she is going for will take time. I'm not able to move as fast as I would like right now."

McGonagall smiled and nodded to the girl as she left her office. Then, with a sigh of resignation she turned to Dumbledore's portrait. "You had better hope that this turns out okay, Albus. If not, I will chuck your portrait into the lake with the squid."

The portrait laughed. "I would expect nothing less from you, Minerva. I do believe that this will work itself out. My first choice for Ms. Granger would have been Mr. Weasley, but with his unfortunate demise, Mr. Malfoy is a good choice."

McGonagall just shook her head and bent back over the papers she had been reading.

* * *

Hermione took one last look at herself in the mirror. Ginny had been right. Wearing Muggle clothes made her feel good about herself. She had styled her hair into soft waves, pulling the back half of it back in a dragon clip. Per Ginny's orders, she was wearing a pair of low-rise jeans, with a dark emerald green cowl necked sweater. She chose to wear a dragon necklace to compliment her hair clip. She was also wearing her favourite pair of black stiletto boots.

As she put the finishing touched on her make-up, she took a deep calming breath. Finally, once she was done, she walked out of her bathroom. She tried to calm herself by sitting by the fire, drinking tea.

Finally, after about fifteen minutes of waiting, there was a soft knock at her door. Gathering her courage, she opened the door. She smiled as she saw that Draco had chosen to wear Muggle clothes as well.

"Wow, Hermione," he breathed. "You look gorgeous."

Hermione blushed and smiled. She looked at the black jeans and sweater he was wearing. "You don't look to bad yourself."

Draco smiled and offered her his arm. "Are you ready to go?"

Hermione nodded and grabbed her winter cloak from by the door. She grasped his arm lightly and they began the walk to Hogsmeade.

Neither said anything on the brief walk into the village. Silently, Draco led Hermione into a small restaurant, _The Stag_, which had begun its business after the fall of Voldemort. It was a quiet restaurant, small and intimate.

Hermione, who had not been able to bring herself to visit the restaurant in fear of being reminded of Harry, was surprised by the décor. Small tables and plants complimented the red and gold walls. It was lit by soft candlelight and had a restful atmosphere.

Draco noticed Hermione's look of astonishment. "What, did you expect it to be filled with memorabilia from the war?"

Hermione smiled sheepishly. "Actually, yeah. The stag that it refers to is Harry's Patronus. I've never been here before."

Draco smiled right back at her. "I'll admit, I was surprised at the décor, but it doesn't shove the 'Boy That Lived' mantra down your throat. I think it's very tasteful." He paused when the maitre d approached.

"Can I help you, sir?"

"I have a reservation. Under the name Malfoy."

The man nodded in deference. "Of course, sir. Follow me, sir."

The couple followed the man to a small, secluded table. It was set apart from the others, surrounded by flowering plants. Draco graciously held out the chair for Hermione to sit in, before taking a seat himself.

"So…" Draco started.

"Yes?" Hermione asked.

"How did you get your name? Hermione is very unusual."

Hermione laughed. "My parents had a great love for William Shakespeare."

"Who?"

Hermione raised her eyebrows in surprise. "You don't know who Shakespeare is?" At Draco's negative nod, she continued, "He was a playwright in the seventeenth century. Very famous. My name comes from a play called _A Winter's Tale._ My parents were impressed by her monologue and decided to name me after her."

"Oh. That's unusual."

"And the name Draco isn't?"

Draco laughed. "I'll give you that. Malfoy names are taken from ancient civilizations. My father's name was Roman. Mine is Greek. It means dragon serpent or it's a constellation."

Hermione smiled. "I know that. Draco is a constellation in the northern latitudes. It is said in Roman mythology that he guarded the golden apples on the tree in a garden tended by Hesperides. They were the daughters of Atlas, who carried the world on his shoulders. Once Hercules killed the dragon, Hera placed him in the heavens."

Draco raised his eyes in surprise, feeling flattered that she knew the origin of his name. "How did you find that out?"

Hermione blushed. "I researched it one summer."

"Why?"

Hermione's blush deepened. "After you were cleared, I was intrigued. So I read a book. That's what I'm good at." Her tone changed to a self depreciating one with her last sentence.

Draco sensed the change in her and looked her in the eyes. "Hermione, you are a very smart witch. While you are somewhat of a bookworm, it is not the only thing you are good at."

Hermione looked at Draco, gratitude in her eyes. "Thanks." She decided to try to move the topic. "What was it like growing up knowing that you were a wizard?"

At that point, the waiter showed up. Both of them chose a shepherd's pie for their main course.

Draco drew a breath. "I don't know about other wizards, but growing up a Malfoy was hard. Father expected me to be perfect and he kept cramming all that pureblood crap down my throat. I truly believed that Muggle born witches and wizards were inferior."

"_If you prick us, do we not bleed?"_ Hermione quoted softly. At Draco's confused look, she continued. "It's another Shakespearean quote. _'If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge?'_ Those words are timeless and describe many points in both Muggle and Wizarding history."

Draco nodded. "Exactly. It wasn't until I met you that my prejudices got blown away. You were supposed to be inferior to me. Not as smart, not as good as me, but you outstrip me in everything."

Hermione smiled softly. "Except for Quidditch. I'm terrified of flying."

"Really. You don't strike me as someone who has fears. You faced Voldemort like it was nothing."

Hermione flinched a little at the memories that the name brought back. "That was just a childish sense of invincibility. The triumph of good over evil. That was before I knew what a high price our arrogance would bring. But, I don't want to talk about that right now."

Draco accepted her statement with a nod. "What about you? What was it like growing up in the Muggle world?"

Hermione grinned at memories that his questions invoked. "It was nice. The unusual part was the strange things that always happened around me. I felt like a freak. It was so nice to find out that I wasn't going crazy."

Draco laughed as the waiter set down there food. The rest of the meal was spent in quiet discussion of their differing backgrounds.

After dinner, Hermione and Draco walked back to Hogwarts. Draco walked her to her quarters and both paused.

Draco smiled softly, a light coming into his grey eyes. "I had fun tonight."

Hermione nodded. "Me, too."

"So," Draco said, looking like he was in silent debate. Finally, he picked up their entwined hands and kissed Hermione's softly. "I'll see you tomorrow. Pleasant dreams."

Hermione stared at him in wonder. "G'night," she said, lost in thought. Feeling like she was floating on cloud nine, she walked into her quarters to get ready for bed.

* * *

_**AN: **__The information on the constellation, Draco, is credited to the website www(dot)starryskies(dot)com._

_Bella1992 - For some reason, I just love to see Lee and Ginny together. I have a feeling she can handle him (having so much experience with the twins, of course!) I haven't written that part yet, it's been all about Hermione and Draco, but I will definitely fill in the back story on at least Ginny and Lee, and Neville and Luna (who is one of my fav characters!)_

_LosingTrack - Thanks! I'm managing to update today, even though I am completely exhausted!_

_Hotkat144 - Thanks for the review!_

_BakaNeko17 - Thanks! Here ya go! (:p)_

_quibbler149 - I'm trying, really. But I'm working close to 60 hours a week and am finding it hard to find time to write, much less update! But you're good until 15, at least, but I'm going to try and write this weekend after I get some sleep!_


	10. What's in a Name

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**_Here's the next chappie!! Thanks to all who reviewed. As always, please R&R. My muse loves the attention._

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**10. What's in a name?**

The day after their successful first date, both Hermione and Draco awoke feeling pleased. Hermione was surprised that during the entire evening she did not once think about Lucius. Draco was surprised because Hermione had let down her guard a bit.

Rising from his bed, Draco carefully got ready. He looked around his room and found a book that he had been reading on transfigurations. He picked it up, studying it. It was an original copy of a manuscript written by Rowena Ravenclaw. _Huh. I wonder if Hermione would like to borrow this. This seems to be just what she would love to read._

With a grin on his face, he picked up the book and made a hurried plan to bring her breakfast in her quarters.

Meanwhile, Hermione was stretching luxuriously in bed. She felt well rested. As she opened her eyes, to get up, she made a realization. _Hum. I didn't have a nightmare last night._ Trying to figure out why, she was puzzled. Finally, after lying in bed for thirty minutes, she decided to get up.

After taking a soothing bath, she got dressed in a simple pair of jogging pants and a sweatshirt. She decided to begin her letter to Ginny, to fulfil her promise to Owl her as soon as she awoke after the date.

Smiling her herself, she pulled out a piece of parchment and began to write. As soon as she had written her salutation, there was a soft knock at the door. Putting down the quill, she padded softly to the door, opening it to see a smiling Draco standing there, holding a covered tray.

"Good morning," he said softly.

Hermione smiled, heat rising to her cheeks. "Good morning."

"I brought you some breakfast. Are you hungry?"

Hermione nodded as she motioned for him to enter. "A little. I just got up and haven't had a chance to eat yet," she replied whilst they walked to her small breakfast nook.

Draco set the breakfast down, and whipped the lid off with a flourish. He grinned as Hermione's eyes opened wide with the variety that she was presented with. "I had the elves make your favourites," he said shyly.

Hermione looked at the selection varying from fruits to porridge. "Thanks. This is so thoughtful," she said with a smile.

Draco shrugged. "I also have a gift for you," he said as he handed her the manuscript. "Although, I do want it back at some point."

Hermione looked down at the book, a look of shock overtaking her face. "Is this really…" she trailed off at a loss for words.

Draco nodded. "Yeah. An original manuscript by Rowena Ravenclaw. The language is a bit archaic, but I think that you of all people will be able to make it out. I've read about half of it and it is fascinating."

Hermione was unable to contain her excitement and she threw herself at Draco, wrapping him in a hug. "Oh Merlin, Draco. This is fabulous," she whispered.

Draco tightened his arms around him, enjoying the feel of her in his arms. "You're welcome, 'Mione," he returned whilst giving her a small kiss on the cheek.

Hermione stiffed immediately at the use of her old nickname. Guilt running through her, she removed herself from Draco's arms.

"Hermione? What's wrong?" Draco asked in concern.

Hermione looked at him, seeing the concern and tried to respond as the tears welled up in her eyes. "I…um….Please don't call me that."

"Don't call you what? Hermione?" Draco asked, confused.

Hermione shook her head. "No. 'Mione."

Draco furrowed his brows. "I thought that was your nickname? Why can't I use your nickname?" he asked, his voice becoming edged with anger.

Hermione swallowed hard. "It's not my nickname. I haven't been called that in five years. No one…nobody has called me that since Ron and Harry were killed," she said, trailing off in tears.

Draco mentally kicked himself, feeling like a git for bringing those memories back to her. Quickly, he wrapped his arms back around her, slowly running his hand up and down her back as he tried to soothe her. "I'm sorry. I didn't think." He thought for a moment. "That's why Minerva calls you Mia, isn't it?" He felt her nod. "Okay. Is it okay if I call you Mia?"

Hermione drew back, starting to calm down. "That's fine," she muttered. "I'm sorry. Even after all this time, losing them still hurts." She sat down at the table and stared into the fire, watching the flickering flames.

Draco sat opposite of her, also staring into the fire. He thought back to his mother, who had been killed by the Dark Lord minutes before Harry had killed him. "I think I know what you mean. Every once and a while, something will remind me of Mother and the pain is almost crippling."

That quiet statement brought Hermione out of her daze. "Did Voldemort kill her?"

Draco continued to stare in the flames as he allowed himself to think of that fateful day. "Yeah. From what I found out, he was displeased that he was losing the war and he blamed my father, whom had already been killed by Weasley. So, he tortured and killed her moments before Potter confronted him. For years afterwards, I burdened myself with what ifs. Eventually, I had a long talk with Andromeda and managed to put it behind me. For the most part."

Hermione smiled softly as she laid her hand on his. "I know what you mean about the what ifs. I still sometimes think that if I had just changed one thing, then Harry and Ron would have lived. It's like torture, isn't it?"

Draco nodded in his understanding. "You know," he started. "It's nice to talk to someone who understands the guilt."

Hermione laughed a little. "Guilt? I have that in spades. I was the brains of the so called "Golden Trio" and I am the only one that survived. I let the entire Weasley family down. Not only did they lose three members of their family, but they also lost Harry, whom they regarded as another son."

"Mia," Draco said earnestly. "You can't blame yourself. We were kids, battling a megalomaniacal arsehole. We were all caught up in something that was out of our control."

Hermione looked into his warm silver eyes. "How did you get out? I know you didn't fight in the final battle."

Draco sighed, picking at his food. "After that whole debacle with Dumbledore, Snape took me into hiding. I lived like a Muggle for close to a year. It was there that I really began to understand them. They're not so different from us. When the Final Battle was upon us, Snape brought us back to the Order. Minerva offered me protection in exchange for any information that I had on my father."

"What was your father like?" Hermione asked.

"Before he got involved with the Dark Lord again? He was strict, but I saw glimmers of the love he held for me. After the Dark Lord came back, he changed completely. He constantly pushed for perfection, disciplining me if I got even one thing wrong." Draco laughed wryly. "I must say, you made my life a living hell. Your scores always beat mine and Father didn't understand why I couldn't best you in them."

Hermione smiled. "Maybe you should have studied harder."

Draco laughed. "I don't think I could have. As much as people didn't believe I studied, I was always up until the wee hours of the morning, doing my homework, reading ahead. Doing anything I could to try and beat you."

"Really? I never knew that. I worked so hard to keep my grades up and it was so hard with all the extracurricular activities that we got up to." Hermione rolled her eyes. "We were always out after curfew. If it hadn't been for Harry's cloak, we would have been expelled so many times!"

Draco looked at her, noticing that her face was lighting up with the good memories. He felt a heaviness enter his chest, feeling jealousy at her good memories of school. His memories consisted of trying to be the Slytherin Prince. The epitome of perfection, charm and Pureblood royalty. He shook the feeling off and smiled at her. "Why don't you tell me about it?" he asked, wanting to hear more of her exploits.

Hermione settled back in her seat, her eyes lighting up. "Well, it all started in our first year," she began.

* * *

**AN:** _Okay. So sorry to make you wait...But yeah! I finished chapter 16 and am just waiting on my beta to get it back to me. (:D) Thanks for all the reviews!_

_christy86 - Thanks! Here you go. (:p)_

_KlingonGal - Thanks so much! I hope you keep up with the story._

_blaire08 - It is very sad that Ron and Harry had to die, but I just couldn't write this story without them being dead. It becomes important in later chapters for how some events played out. Thanks for the review!_

_LosingTrack - Thanks! I'm glad you're liking it._

_HotKat144 - That was a fun chapter to write. Alas, things are going to get bumpy for them!_

_Bella1992 - I love Neville and Luna together, too. I've actually got a couple of chapters of a Neville and Luna story written, but my muse has no inspiration for that, so hopefully I can finish it soon! Thanks for the review!_

_crystal stardust - There will be...it will be awhile for them since I have to deal with Hermione actually telling Draco what happened to her. Things get a little dark for a while, but I love happy endings, so it will have a happy ending! Thanks!_

_woaivampireboys - Here ya go! I do update weekly (either Thursday or Friday, depending on how much I'm working), so I promise regular updates!_


	11. We'll Always have Paris

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**_Here's the next chappie!! Thanks to all who reviewed. As always, please R&R. My muse loves the attention._

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**11. We'll Always Have Paris**

_Draco looked around the room, obviously a bedroom, which was decorated in gold and silver. He could see the four poster bed sitting prominently in the middle of the room with bedside tables on either side. He walked closer to the tables, to see the pictures that graced them._

_As he reached the bed, he realized that he was in some of the pictures holding two babies. Curious, he picked up the photograph to get a better look. Smiling he looked at the two children, each sucking on a thumb. With a sense of peace coming over him, he looked at the expression on his face. An expression that he had never seen before. He looked content._

_Putting that photograph down, he picked up the one next to it and almost dropped it in shock. It was a picture of him and Hermione snuggling in the bed he was standing next to. He was looking at her with adoration in his eyes and she had love shining out of hers._

With a start, Draco awoke from the dream with his heart racing. He shook his head, trying to make sense of what he had seen. He picked up his watch from the bedside table and looked at the dial. It read 3 a.m.

He got out of the bed, still shaking over the images in the dream, images that his head refused to believe in. His head was telling him that he didn't deserve Hermione. Their conversation the previous day had shown him that she had been deeply in love with Weasley. Her love for him had shown on her face when she had talked about their exploits. _She'll never love me,_ he thought in depression as jealousy welled up inside of him. _She wasn't even willing to share something with me until after we were forcibly engaged._

Sighing in defeat, he sat in front of his fireplace, a glass of water in his hand. He looked into the flames trying to figure out the emotions that were surging through his body. Yes, he felt desire for her. Her mind had always engaged his; he had known that in school.

Feeling restless, he got up from the chair and grabbed his robe. He walked out of his quarters and began to haunt the corridors of the castle; walking always helped him clear his mind.

He was on the seventh floor, in front of the place where the Room of Requirement had been, before it was destroyed in the final battle, pacing back and forth, not realizing where he was. He kept pacing, asking himself what the dream had meant and was puzzled when he realized that a door had appeared. Intrigued, he withdrew his wand from his pocket and opened the door with caution.

The room was only dimly lit, but he saw a huge mirror standing in front of him. Out of curiosity, he walked over to the mirror and gazed into it. All he could see was him and Hermione standing on a grassy knoll, watching children play.

His heart leapt at the thought as a smile crossed his face. He watched himself turn to her and even though he could hear no sound he saw himself tell her that he loved her. Stunned he collapsed in front of the mirror, his mind frozen in the realization.

_Oh Merlin. I love her! How? When?_ His mind was whirling with questions that it couldn't answer but then his heart made itself known. Looking deep inside of himself, he realized that he had loved her since school. It had started out as admiration for her mind and her right hook. Bits of memory began flinging themselves at him.

The way she had let her rage at him overwhelm her and punch him in third year, to the way she had looked in the battle, fighting Death Eaters twice her age and winning. Shaking his head in defeat, he looked around the room, still impressed that it still worked.

A plan came to his mind and smiling he left the room trying to work out the details.

* * *

A couple of weeks had passed since the morning that Hermione had told Draco about all of Harry, Ron and their exploits throughout school. She thought back to the morning and to all they had learned about each other. The only regret that she had was that she didn't come clean on when she was kidnapped. She didn't even tell him that she was kidnapped by Voldemort.

Hermione sighed as she was grading the essays that her class had written. The guilt of keeping that inside of her was beginning to eat away at her conscience. She shook her head as she tried to focus on the parchment in front of her.

Several hours later, she was finally done with her grading. Feeling a sense of accomplishment, she walked back to her quarters, to change before dinner. Draco had told her that he had a surprise for her. Smiling, she remembered that Christmas was just a week away. She had made a clandestine trip to Hogsmeade the previous week to purchase Draco's present, which was now sitting wrapped in her quarters.

Once in her quarters, she hurriedly changed into a simple black skirt with a royal blue silk button down shirt. She paired the skirt with a pair of stiletto knee high boots that emphasized her toned legs. Smiling, she decided to leave her hair down, in its natural waves and only applied a bit of make-up.

After she finished getting ready, she sat in the arm chair in front of the fire, contemplating on when she was going to come clean with Draco. She knew that it had to be soon, but she didn't want to cast a pall over the holiday. Making up her mind, she told herself that she would tell him after Christmas. Sighing she gazed into the flames, fighting the memories.

A light knock on the door forced her out of her recollections. She smoothed her skirt as she stood and walked quickly to the door. "Hi," she told Draco shyly.

Draco looked at her and almost groaned as his body had a painful reaction. "You look gorgeous," he said will giving her a chaste kiss on her cheek. "Are you ready for dinner?"

Hermione blushed a little at his compliment and nodded her head. "Where are we going?" she asked.

Draco's smiled turned into a smirk. "That's a surprise."

Hermione looked at him as he led her through the corridors of the school, finally up to the seventh floor. She looked at him as he passed along a wall and with a start of recognition she realized it was the Room of Requirement. She pursed her lips, trying to smother a grin.

Finally, the door appeared and Draco ushered her through it. Hermione looked around in amazement. They seemed to be in a café in Paris. She looked at him with a question in her eyes.

Draco shrugged slightly. "It's my favorite café in Paris. Since we can't actually go there, I brought it to us."

"It's wonderful, Draco. I love it."

Draco smiled and led her to a small table. He pulled the chair out for her and then settled across from her, handing her a menu.

Hermione looked at the menu in confusion. As far as she knew, the Room would not provide food or drink, but then she looked down at the menu, which only had a couple of things on it. Smirking, she giggled a bit. "Couldn't figure out how to make the room provide food and drink?" she asked impishly.

Draco laughed. "Nope, but I had Dobby's help in preparing this, so the food should be edible." He waved his wand and the hors d'oeuvres appeared on the table.

"So," Hermione began. "Why all the fuss?"

"Do I need a reason to spoil you?" Draco asked.

That caught Hermione off guard and unthinking she said the first thing that came to her mind. "Why do you want to spoil me? It's not like we're in love."

Her words struck Draco in the heart, but he strove not to let his emotions show on his face. "But we are dating and we do have to get married, so why not? Why should I not treat you as my girlfriend? That's what you are."

Hermione shook her head, shocked that she had not thought about her words more carefully. Even as she said them, she knew that they were untrue. She was falling in love with him. "Okay. I'll accept that and I'm sorry that I was careless with my words."

Draco shrugged. "Don't worry about it." He paused. "What are you doing for Christmas?"

Hermione smiled. "Going to the Burrow. Do you want to come?"

"I don't know. What will my reception be? I know that I'm not the most popular guy in that family."

"As long as you can stand the inevitable pranks that the twins will pull, you'll be okay," she responded with a smile that didn't quite make it to her eyes.

Draco nodded and waved his wand again, bringing the main course, Coq au Vin, to the table. Quietly, they both began to eat, their thoughts turning to the upcoming holiday.

* * *

**AN:**_ Here you go guys!! Please let me know what you think. :D_

_blaire08 - I'm not going to go over what happened in the books, but in a couple of chapters, I will have flashbacks of what it was like for Hermione when she was kidnapped. Thanks for the review!_

_Bella1992 - I like seeing about Draco during the war, too. I just had to write that in! Thanks!_

_woaivampireboys - I'm sorry that I'm not going to go into that very much! I didn't want to just go over the same information, but I'm glad you're liking the story! Thanks!_

_HotKat144 - Draco had a surprise up his sleeve! Thanks!_

_Losing Track - Thanks!_

_crystal stardust - Nope. I really want to get them together, but I don't want it to be a never ending story, so I'm not really going to cover what happened in the books. I'm jumping ahead to Christmas and then in a couple of chapters, Hermione comes clean. Thanks!_


	12. A Chilly Reception

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**_Here's the next chappie!! Thanks to all who reviewed. As always, please R&R. My muse loves the attention._

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**12. A Chilly Reception**

A short and trying week later, Draco and Hermione were preparing to Floo to the Burrow. Draco looked at Hermione with a little concern in his eyes. She looked like she hadn't been sleeping well. "Mia? Are you okay?"

Hermione sighed; nightmares had been invading her dreams. "It was just a rough week. The children were extremely unruly this week."

Draco nodded his understanding. "Thankfully, none of them caused any explosions in Potions." He shuddered in memory. "Although, it was close. It was almost like all of the children lost their ability to concentrate."

"It usually is this bad the week before Christmas. They all just want to get out of here. Luckily, they all are returning home this year. Last year, Minerva and I stayed here for the three students that didn't go home."

"I hated the Christmas' that I had to spend here. It was usually because my father was in a foul mood and Mother wanted to spare me from him," Draco admitted.

"I almost always stayed for Harry so he wouldn't have to go back to those awful people who were his family." Hermione shuddered at the memory of meeting the Dursley's.

"Were they really that bad?" Draco asked.

Hermione looked at him, a fire coming to her eyes. "He lived in a cupboard under the stairs for ten years of his life. What do you think?"

Draco shook his head. "No wonder he hated me," he murmured as he remembered how cruel he was to him. He shook his head to clear his memories and picked up Hermione's valise. "You ready to leave?"

Hermione nodded as she picked up a handful of Floo Powder. Throwing it into the fire she called out, "The Burrow!"

Draco watched her disappear in the green flames as he followed suit. When he exited the fire, he self consciously brushed the ash from his clothes. He looked around at the welcome Hermione was getting.

Arthur watched Draco out of the corner of his eyes, wanting to see how he reacted to the boisterous family. He predictably hung back, watching the chaos. He smiled lightly and walked over to him. "They can be very loud, so if you want to sleep in, make sure you put a Silencing charm around your room at night."

Draco looked in shock at the patriarch of the Wesley family. "Um, thank you sir," he responded. "I'll keep that in mind." He made a motion to the suitcases he was carrying. "Where can I put these?"

"Follow me," Arthur said walking towards the stairs.

Draco followed him, marveling in the differences between this household and the one he grew up in. Whilst the Weasley's were not swimming in money, the love that enveloped the family caused a pang of jealousy to wash over him. He studied the quirky little house in fascination until Arthur stopped at a door.

"You'll be in here. This is Percy's old room. Hermione is across the hall in Charlie's old room," he said before turning and pointing at a third door. "This is the washroom. Oh, and be careful and do not under any circumstances enter the last door at the end of the hall. That's the twins' room and I'm not exactly sure what they may have stored in there."

Draco suppressed a shudder at the memory of the pranks that Fred and George had played on him until they had left Hogwarts. "I will definitely avoid that room, then. Thank you Mr. Weasley," he said sincerely.

Arthur smiled at the young man. "Please, call me Arthur. We consider Hermione to be a daughter to us and soon you will be part of the family."

Draco looked at him. "I'll try, sir, but I'm at a bit of a loss. I've never been around such a close knit family before."

Arthur laughed. "We do take some getting used to," he said as he turned walk back downstairs.

Draco looked around and quickly placed the suitcases in the room. Straightening his shoulders, he walked back downstairs. When he entered the sitting room, he felt a weight press down on his chest as he discovered two children snuggled up on either side of Hermione. His mind flashed back to his dream and he fought to take in a breath.

Hermione raised her eyes to the stunned look on Draco's face and smiled sweetly. "Jamie? Lily? Would you like to say hello to Draco?"

The two children glanced at the unfamiliar man. "Who is he, Aunt Mia?" Lily asked in a hushed voice.

Hermione lowered her head to whisper back to her, "He's my boyfriend."

Lily scrunched her nose up. "Eww. Boys are gross!" Hermione just laughed as the little girl stared up at Draco.

Draco walked up to the couch and crouched down in front of them. "Hi," he said uncertainly. "I'm Draco."

Lily looked at him, her green eyes boring into his silver ones. "You have nice eyes," she stated before jumping into his arms. James just burrowed deeper into Hermione's arms, not looking at him.

Hermione looked at the confused look on his face. "Draco, meet James and Lily Potter. Ginny's children."

Draco looked down at Lily. "Nice to meet you, Lily." Then he glanced over to James. "Nice to meet you, too, James." He stood up and shifted Lily more securely into his arms, then sat down next to Hermione. He turned to her and asked, "Who is here?"

Hermione looked at him, seeing trepidation in his eyes. "Molly, Arthur, Ginny and the twins. The rest of the family will come over on Christmas Eve." Her eyes grew serious. "Molly and Arthur have put the past behind them and Ginny will probably not do anything, but you need to watch out for the twins. I don't know how Bill will feel, but I trust him to control himself. I don't trust Fred and George."

Draco nodded, understanding her warning. He looked down a Lily, surprised about how quickly she accepted him. He felt emotion welling up in his chest by how much holding Lily felt right to him.

Ginny walked into the room to see the homely scene that Draco and Hermione made, sitting on the couch with her children in their arms. She looked at them cautiously, not sure of how to proceed with Draco. She knew that he had been cleared of all charges, but that didn't alleviate the uneasiness she felt.

Draco looked at her, sensing her uneasiness. "How are you doing, Ginny?"

"I'm well, thank you. You?"

"I'm doing well." Draco looked up as Molly walked into the room.

"Lunch is ready," she stated simply.

Hermione looked down at James. "Jamie, sweetheart, you'll have to get up if you want to eat lunch." James out up reluctantly and held onto Hermione's hand tightly when Draco stood up.

They walked into the dining room, Lily refusing to let Draco put her down. She started to whine when he tried to set her in a chair. Ginny said to her sternly, "Lilith. Stop whining and sit at the table like a big girl."

Lily looked at her mother. "Yes Mummy."

Draco looked at her in gratitude, not knowing exactly to handle children. As Hermione got James settled, he pulled out her chair for her.

"Thanks," she said as she finally sat down and they began to pass the food around the table.

The conversation was a little stilted as they dished out their food. Molly and Ginny were shooting covert glances at Draco, expecting the worst. Draco, on the other hand, was trying his hardest to be pleasant. He looked around at the table and at the simple foods and knew from Molly's look that she has expecting him to throw a fit.

He took a bite of the cottage pie and smiled. "Mrs. Weasley, this is delicious," he said with sincerity.

Molly looked at him with suspicion in her eyes. "Thank you, Draco. I'm glad that you like it. It's just a simple cottage pie," she said graciously.

Ginny looked at Draco, still reserving her judgment on him, but not wanting to antagonize him. She carefully watched both him and Hermione throughout dinner. She noticed that Hermione was a lot more open to him than she had expected, but it was Draco that surprised her the most.

As he looked at Hermione, when she wasn't paying attention, Ginny noticed emotion shimmering in his eyes. _Oh Merlin,_ she realized with a start. _I think he may be in love with her! I need to talk to Mum about this._ Feeling a little more secure in Hermione's future, she relaxed back and began to enjoy the conversation.

* * *

When Draco awoke on Christmas Eve, he was feeling a little better about his reception. It has taken a few days for Molly and Ginny to warm up to him, but they were slowly losing their uneasiness around him. He knew that the big test would be today. He was understandably nervous about Fred and George's reaction to him.

He got out of bed and soon was sitting at the table, bacon and eggs sitting in front of him. "This looks wonderful, Mrs. Weasley," he began before there was a large bang and the door flew open, causing him to drop his fork.

"Fred! George!" Molly yelled. "Do not damage this house. If you want to act like bulls in a china shop then you can just leave." She had a smile on her face as she finished her scolding.

"Mum! You could never to that to us," the twins chorused together as they swept into the room. Both stopped in their tracks as they saw Draco sitting at the table.

"Oh look," Fred started. "It's the amazing bouncing ferret."

Draco winched at the jab and fought down a scathing comeback. "Fred. George. I've heard good things about your store. Congratulations," he said mildly.

George ignored him. "Mum? Why is he here?"

"He's here because he is my fiancé, George," Hermione said from the doorway.

"Mia!" the twins shouted whilst running to her and wrapping her in a bear hug. "You mean the Ministry is making you marry that git?"

Draco fought down jealousy as the twins hugged her and the anger at their words. _Can't you at least give me a chance to prove that I've changed,_ he thought scathingly.

"Fred, please refrain from calling him names. Draco has changed and he is not the git you remember from school. If you don't…" she trailed off threateningly.

Fred held up his hands in surrender. "Fine. I'll refrain from calling him names," he said before smirking at her.

Hermione just harrumphed as she sat next to Draco at the table. Fred and George sat across from them. Molly, trying to alleviate any tension, quickly sat the food in front of them and they proceeded to eat in piece.

Draco paused from his eating for a second, turning to Hermione. "So, when do we open the gifts?"

Hermione looked at him. "Usually after Christmas dinner. Although, the kids can never wait, so they are allowed to open one present when they wake up. This year, I want to take them to a Muggle Christmas Eve church service. I think it will be a good experience for them."

Draco looked at her, puzzled. "Why?"

"It's like seeing a different culture. My parents didn't take me to church often, but we always went on Christmas Eve. The service is about a message of hope."

Draco nodded at her. "Hope is important. It was hope that helped me make it through the year in hiding. Can I come?"

Hermione smiled. "Of course!"

Both turned back to their food, unaware that Fred and George had sprinkled a powder over Draco's food. Draco took another bite of the scrambled eggs and suddenly his hair turned bright pink.

Hermione looked up as Fred and George burst into a fit of laughter. She glanced at Draco and sighed in annoyance. "Fred, George. What in Merlin's name did you do to Draco's food?"

Draco looked at her confused. "What? What's wrong?" he asked with a little panic edging his voice.

Hermione pursed her lips before shooting a death glare at the twins. "Your hair is pink."

"What!" Draco exclaimed. He jumped up from the table and ran to the washroom to look in a mirror while both Hermione and Molly glared at Fred and George.

"What?" George asked. "He was asking for it. Serves the git right!"

"Fred. George," Molly growled. "That young man has changed his life. He is no longer the boy he was in school. Let the past rest." She delivered another glare to them. "There will be no more playing pranks on him or you will not get your Christmas gifts," she threatened.

Both of them looked at her in shock and then lowered their heads in defeat. "Yes Mum," they chorused together.

Molly turned and left the room. Hermione just stared at them. "Is it permanent?"

The twins looked at her, seeing the disappointment in her eyes. "No. It'll wear off in a couple of hours. It's a new hair tonic that we are trying. I think it was successful, George. Don't you?"

George nodded. "That is was, Fred. I think we can put these out for sale on Boxing Day."

Hermione just sighed as she got up from the table. At the doorway, she turned and glared at him. "You do that again, both of you will be at the end of my wand."

Fred and George just looked at her as she left the room, identical smiles on their faces.

* * *

_LosingTrack - Thanks! Here you go!_

_Hotkat144 - Thank you so much! I've worked hard on this and I'm glad people are liking it!_

_Like Red on Rose - Thanks! I hope you've caught up!_

_blaire08 - Yes, her words were harsh, but I wanted to portray how much she is holding back and not dealing with. She's starting to have feelings for him, feelings that she hadn't felt since Ron, so she's a little high strung right now! Thanks for the review!_

_love-matcher - Thanks! I'm glad you like it!!_

_Bella1992 - How'd ya like the twins!! It was fun to write this chapter! Thanks!!_

_jocat - Thank you so much!! That is such a compliment. I want to stay true to the story (and since I read a lot of British Lit and have a fab British beta, I think I manager to do that!). Thanks so much for your review!!_


	13. Christmas Blessings

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**_Here's the next chappie!! Thanks to all who reviewed. As always, please R&R. My muse loves the attention._

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**13. Christmas Blessings**

Early Christmas morning, Draco fell into bed, exhausted. Hermione and Draco had taken Lily and James to a Muggle Christmas Eve church service. Draco had stared around in wonderment at the decorations on the church, the same as the children.

Hermione had insisted that they go to the midnight service, so they could get the full effect, so when they got home, all four were exhausted. Quietly, they had put the children to bed and soon after fallen into their own beds.

Several hours later, Draco awoke and wasn't sure what he what had disturbed him. Then he heard the whimper. Thinking it might be one of the children having a nightmare, he sat up to see if Ginny was going to tend to them, before remembering that the children were asleep on the third floor and the whimper had come from across the hall.

He realized that he had forgotten to put up the Silencing charm. He got out of the bed and walked across the hall to knock lightly on Hermione's door. When he got no other response than a whimper, he opened the door, creating light with his wand.

Hermione lay in the bed with the sheets twisted around her body. Her head was moving back in forth and Draco could tell that she was having a nightmare. He cast the Silencing charm around her room, so no one else could hear her and walked to the bed.

"Hermione? Mia? Darling, wake up. It's just a nightmare," he said, trying to soothe her. He stroked her hair lightly, trying to get her to wake up.

After a few minutes, she shot awake, sitting straight up in bed screaming, "No!"

"Mia? It's okay. It's okay," he murmured, gathering her into his arms.

Hermione fought off the nightmare, recognizing Draco's voice. She shuddered as the memories tried to overwhelm her again. After a couple of minutes, she withdrew from his arms. "I'm okay. Sorry I woke you," she said a little dully.

Draco looked into her eyes which were without the normal spark that he saw in them. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"No," Hermione said shaking her head. "I'll be okay. Just go back to bed."

Draco got a steely glint in his eyes. "Mia? You woke up screaming, no. That's not something that I'm just going to dismiss. Please, talk to me. Tell me what's wrong."

Hermione sighed and looked into his eyes, seeing the concern that filled them. "I'll tell you, but not today. Give me some space and I'll tell you everything."

Draco looked at her, realizing that she was at least compromising with him. "All right."

Hermione glanced at the clock and with a start realized that it was after five. "I might as well get up. I'm not going back to sleep. I can start breakfast for everyone."

An hour later, the smell of breakfast brought the rest of the house down to breakfast. Lily and James immediately ran to the Christmas tree and exclaimed that Santa had been. Taking one look at the children looking longingly at the presents, the adults gave in to the pressure.

"Okay," Ginny said wearily. "You each may open one present. Then we eat breakfast. You can open the rest of the gifts when everyone gets here."

Both of the children squealed with joy and ran to the tree. They both choose presents from Santa and Draco watched in amazement as they ripped open the presents. Both children shouted as they unwrapped two identical toy brooms. "Can we play with them?" both children asked.

"Not now," Ginny said smiling. "After we eat breakfast, you can play with them until everyone else gets here."

The children nodded and ran towards the table, with the adults trailing behind them.

* * *

After lunch, Draco was almost overwhelmed with all of the family there. Bill, Fleur and their kids were there. Fred and George were up to their usual antics, surrounded by a parade of fireworks and explosions. Draco realized that they were a big hit with the children. Once things had settled down a bit, they began to open presents.

He watched in trepidation as Hermione picked up his gift. _I hope she likes it._

Hermione looked at Draco as she picked up the elegantly wrapped green and silver present. She mentally rolled her eyes as he had wrapped the present in Slytherin colors. She picked carefully at the paper, not wanting to destroy the beautiful paper. She smiled when she saw how impatient he was getting.

Hermione stared at the black velvet box in her hands and cautiously opened it. She gasped as she stared at the necklace. She opened her mouth, but was unable to form any words.

Ginny looked at her. "What is it?" When Hermione didn't respond, she got up and peered over her shoulder. "Oh, Merlin. That's gorgeous."

Gingerly, Hermione lifted the necklace out of the box. It was a double pendant that alternated diamonds and sapphires. "Wow. Draco. Um…" Hermione tried to begin.

Draco looked at her. "It was my mother's. I thought that it was perfect for you," he said softly.

The rest of the Weasley's looked on in amazement; even Fred and George seemed to be at a loss for words. "Thank you," Hermione replied softly, unsure of what to feel. She tried to break out of the trace and handed him her present.

Draco opened the present with as much zeal as James and Lily. When he opened the box, his eyes rose to meet hers. "Mia, this is gorgeous," he said, lifting the watch out of the box. It was an antique gold pocket watch that featured a snake on it. The cover of the watch was the snake's head and its eyes were emeralds.

"I'm glad you like it," Hermione said.

"I love it," Draco replied, leaning over and giving her a quick hug, noticing that she stiffened slightly as his arms wrapped around her. Pulling back slightly, he saw that her eyes were guarded before the boisterous family erupted with exclamations over their presents to each other. Promising himself that he would get to the bottom of her skittishness, he allowed himself to be pulled back into the celebration.

* * *

The adults continued to talk while the children played with their new toys. Hermione felt her eyes growing heavy as the lack of sleep caught up with her. She fought to stay awake, but her body had other plans and right before dinner, she drifted off.

Draco looked down when he felt Hermione's head rest against his shoulder. He smiled softly when he saw that she was asleep. "If you'll excuse me for a moment," he said to Molly, Ginny, Arthur and Bill, "I'm going to take her up. She didn't get to sleep until really late." He purposely kept his words vague, not wanting to betray her secret to anyone.

Both Ginny and Molly looked at her, seeing from the dark circles that Hermione was not sleeping well. Molly looked at her only daughter, "Go with him. There is some Dreamless Sleep Potion in my room. Get her to drink some."

Ginny nodded in understanding. She stood before Draco did and quickly walked to her parents' room to grab the potion before going into Hermione's room to get her pajamas out.

Draco watched Ginny leave the room and carefully stood up, as to not disturb Hermione. He easily picked her up, and carried her to her room. When he got there, he easily navigated the doorway and was surprised to see Ginny standing by the bed.

Ginny smiled when she saw his surprise. "I'll get her into her pajamas. Just lay her on the bed."

Draco nodded, a little regret rushing through him. "Thanks," he said graciously before slipping out of the room.

Quickly Ginny waved her wand and got Hermione into her flannel pajamas. The she leaned over the bed, whispering softly, "Mia? Can you wake up for me a bit?"

Hermione heard her voice and struggled to open her eyes. "Yeah?" she queried.

"Here is some Dreamless Sleep Potion. Drink it. Have you been sleeping at all?" Ginny asked, worried.

Hermione shook her head. "Couple of hours a night if I don't drink the potion. Don't want to get addicted," she admitted softly.

Ginny nodded her understanding. "You need to tell Draco, Mia. He deserves to know. He might be able to help you overcome it."

Hermione sat up a bit. "I know," she said avoiding Ginny's gaze. "I just…I don't know. Most of the times I don't get him confused, but sometimes when he touches me, hugs me, I'm back in that dungeon. Being groped." She shuddered in horror.

Ginny climbed onto the bed and wrapped her arms around her. "Shhh. It'll be okay. You're strong. You survived it when it happened, but you need to really deal with it. Forcing into a corner of your mind has not helped anything, has it?" she said sagely.

Hermione looked up in startlement at her. "How did you know?"

Ginny smiled. "Who do you think has been counseling all of the people broken by the war, huh? St. Mungo's has opened a special psychology ward and I'm one of the Mediwitch's that is assigned to that ward."

Hermione shook her head. "I didn't know. Why didn't you tell me?"

"Part of our policy is privacy, so only the people who need that ward are told about it. It's not common knowledge to the public."

Hermione sighed before looking out the window. "I wish I had known. I would have gone there sooner."

Ginny chuckled a bit. "If you had told me sooner, I would have taken you there myself," she chided gently.

Hermione accepted the chiding and held out her hand for the potion and quickly drank it down. "I promise not to keep anything like that from you again, Gin."

"Good. Now go to sleep and promise me that you will talk to Draco about this."

"Yes, Mum," Hermione said sarcastically, yawning a bit. "I promise."

Ginny sat by the bed until she fell asleep.

* * *

**AN:**_ Wow. You guys overwhelm me with the number of reviews, favs and alerts! Thank you!! The necklace was inspired by one I saw on Tiffany's website. _

_jocat - I usually update once a week on either Thursday or Friday! Some romance and agnst is coming up, but I probably won't use Fred and George very much. My strong suit is drama, not humor, so I don't feel like I could do them justice if I wrote them a lot. Though, they will pop back up when these two get married! Thanks!_

_Bella1992 - Thanks! I must congratulate my fab beta on that because she talked me into it!_

_blaire08 - Of course not! I was so heartbroken after the final book, that I just couldn't have done that! Thanks!_

_ReaderForLife - Thanks!_


	14. To Tell the Truth

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**_Here's the next chappie! Thanks to all who reviewed. As always, please R&R. My muse loves the attention._

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**14. To Tell the Truth**

When Hermione awoke the next morning, her body felt physically better, but her heart was heavy. After her talk with Ginny, she knew that she had to come clean with Draco, but wasn't sure what his reaction would be. Sighing, she got up and quickly grabbed her clothes to take a shower.

Silently, she stood under the hot spray, mentally debating with herself before finally deciding to tell him. Once out of the shower, she did a quick drying charm on her hair and got dressed. She walked down to the quiet kitchen to find Molly humming softly to herself as she prepared breakfast.

"Good morning," Hermione said softly.

Molly turned around quickly, startled. "Good morning, Mia," she said brightly. "How are you feeling?"

"The sleep helped." Hermione bit her lip. "Would you mind if Draco and I left today? I think I need to talk to him about what happened and I don't want to do that here."

Molly looked at her, concern simmering in her eyes. "Sure. I'll make your excuses to the rest of the family."

"Thank you," Hermione rose from where she was sitting at the table, wanting to leave before more people got up. Quickly, she walked upstairs and knocked lightly on Draco's door.

"Come in," Draco called sleepily.

Hermione walked in and flushed a little to find Draco still in bed. "Hi," she started hesitantly.

"Mia? Are you okay?"

Hermione drew in a breath. "I'm not sure. Listen, you asked me to tell you what was wrong and I promised you that I would tell you. How do you feel about going back to Hogwarts to talk?"

Draco stared at her, sensing her trepidation. "Okay. When do you want to leave?"

"As soon as possible. I want to try to leave before most of the family gets up."

Draco nodded. "I'll get dressed and then we can leave," he said with a smile.

"Thanks," Hermione said as she left the room.

Draco got up quickly and instead of taking a shower, opted for a simple cleansing charm before quickly packing his belongings up. Within fifteen minutes, he was walking out of the room, the luggage shrunk and stowed in his pockets.

He walked downstairs and found Hermione and Ginny chatting quietly at the table. "Good morning, Ginny," Draco said.

"Good morning," Ginny replied. She turned and gave Hermione a quick hug whilst whispering, "Owl me if you need anything."

"Thanks, Gin. I will," Hermione replied with a smile. She watched Ginny leave with a little regret in her eyes, nervous about the conversation. She looked up at Draco. "Ready to go?"

"Yes. Are we going to use the Floo?"

"No. The Floo to Hogwarts is not hooked up now, so we'll have to Apparate to Hogsmeade and then walk to the castle," she said as she stood up.

"Okay. I'm ready. Let's go."

----------------------------------

Minutes later, the pair was walking silently up the path to Hogwarts. Hermione was chewing on her bottom lip out of worry and Draco seemed content that all of his questions would be answered so there seemed to be no reason to talk. Once inside the castle, Draco looked at Hermione. "I'll go put my luggage away. Do you want to talk in my chambers or yours?"

Hermione looked at him, worry in her eyes. "I think mine would be better. I'll have Dobby bring us some tea," she said as she walked towards her quarters. Once there, she quickly unpacked and called out for Dobby.

"Yes, Miss Mia?" the little Elf asked as he popped into view.

Hermione smiled at him. "Can you please bring tea for two in fifteen minutes? Draco and I will be having a talk and we need not be disturbed during it."

Dobby nodded. "Of course, Miss Mia. Dobby will make sure of that," he assured her as he popped out.

Fifteen minutes later, the tea and scones were ready, and Hermione was pacing like a restless lioness around her quarters. She had straightened the room within a hair of it's life and finally sank into a chair, her head between her hands. _I don't want to do this,_ she thought. She shook her head. _But it's not fair to keep this from Draco. He cares about you and he has changed. He is nothing like his father,_ the logical voice inside her head replied calmly.

_He won't be able to stand the sight of me after I tell him!_ she shot back to the voice. _Why? Because you got captured? He knows what the Death Eaters did. He won't hold it against you,_ the voice replied.

Hermione shook her head, feeling like an idiot for debating with herself. She was running her fingers through her hair, trying to calm down, when a knock echoed softly on her door. Biting her lip, she stood up and opened the door.

When the door opened, Draco looked at Hermione. He saw worry and wariness shining in her eyes. Sensing that what she had to tell him was serious, he nodded solemnly. He followed her as she beckoned him inside towards the fire.

Hermione was silent as she sat down across from Draco. Slowly, she drew in a breath and began her story.

_April 29, 1997_

_It was a normal Tuesday night. Hermione was sitting in the Gryffindor common room, working on her homework, which was not due until the following week. She had just started on the Potions essay, when Harry and Ron ran into the room, out of breath. She looked at both of them. "Really, boys. Must you be such a distraction?" she asked in an annoyed tone._

_Harry and Ron sat on either side of her. "'Mione?" Ron asked in a hushed tone. "We need your help?"_

_Hermione rolled her eyes. "Honestly, Ronald. How many times do I have to tell you that I am not going to do your homework? It's right before N.E.W.T.S."_

"_That's not it, 'Mione. We've heard some news," Harry said softly before casting the Silencing charm. "Voldemort is planning on attacking Hogwarts."_

_Hermione's eyes opened wide as she straightened up. "What? When?"_

_Ron took her hand, holding it softly whilst stroking the back of it with his thumb. "Soon. Within a week."_

_Hermione looked at both of them. "How do you know this?"_

_Harry and Ron looked at each other. "Tonks went undercover and overheard some plans that Lucius Malfoy was making. She told the Order, but they aren't taking it seriously. They believe that Hogwarts is impenetrable," Harry said in disgust._

_Hermione shook her head, hearing the scorn in his voice for the Order's lack of taking anything threat seriously. "Do you believe Tonks? Do you think that she is right?"_

_Ron nodded. "Yeah, we do. So, what do we do? The Order is not taking us seriously and so…." he trailed off as the worry filled his voice._

_Hermione smiled. "That's why you came to me. Ron, you know strategy. Tell me, what are the most likely points of entry for a force of Death Eaters?"_

_Ron thought for a moment. "They can't come in through the Room of Requirement anymore, so I would say that the hidden passages are the most likely entry point, barring a full frontal assault," he said with confidence, talking like a general._

_Hermione smiled, her heart swelling with pride as he lost all hesitation. "Okay," she said as she turned to Harry. "Do you have the Map with you?" Harry nodded and quickly laid the map out in front of them. Hermione pointed to the passages. "We need to post sentries in front of the one from Honeyduke's. I don't think that they will come in from the Shrieking Shack, but with Wormtail still part of their forces, nothing is off limits." Hermione paused, her thoughts racing while she tried to plan out what they could do._

_They worked quietly as they began to make a plan, Hermione pointed out that the coins they had used for the DA in 5__th__ year were still active. "We can use those to send messages. If the teachers won't protect us, we'll just have to protect ourselves."_

Draco interrupted her at that point. "What do you mean by coins?"

Hermione smiled. "It was the way that the DA communicated and set up our meetings. I enchanted coins to carry short messages to all the members to let them know when to meet."

Draco nodded. "You managed to do that in 5th year? I'm impressed."

Hermione blushed slightly. "Thanks. I am rather proud of that, but getting back to the story…"

_April 30, 1997_

_Hermione looked around the room, surprised at how few members of the DA had shown up. It was her, Harry, Ron, Neville, Luna, Ginny, Dean, Seamus and Colin. "Is this it?" she asked Harry in hushed tones._

_Harry looked around. "Looks like. It's already ten past when we had set to meet." He cleared his throat. "All right. We are here because Voldemort is planning on attacking Hogwarts. The professors are not taking the threat seriously, so it is up to us to try and protect the school." He made a motion towards Ron who flicked his wand, bringing up a blueprint of the school._

"_Here are the three areas where the Death Eaters are most likely to enter." He pointed out three places. "First, the secret passage from Honeyduke's, then the next passage from the Shrieking Shack by the Whomping Willow and finally the front hall." He looked around, making eye contact with each person there. "Since there are only nine of us, we will split into three teams. First, Dean, Ginny and Colin. You three take the front entrance. Seamus, Neville and Luna, taking the Whomping Willow. Harry, Hermione and I will take the passage from Honeyduke's. We think that is the most likely point. Keep your coins on you at all times. If you see any Death Eaters, let the rest of us know through them."_

_Hermione stepped forward. "We have a very strong indication that they will be attacking within the next couple of days. They will not attack during the daylight hours as the Professors will be out and about. We believe that they will strike sometime around midnight. I as Head Girl, will be able to get you out of the dorms and into position. We start the patrol tonight. Any questions?"_

_The group looked around each other, feeling determination rising in them. Each one shook their head. "We're ready," Neville said, speaking with authority._

Hermione looked at Draco, a haunted look entering her eyes as she paused. "Give me a moment," she said before picking up her tea, trying to buy time to keep the memories from overwhelming her.

Draco looked at her, feeling uneasy and confused. "Mia? I thought the Final Battle was fought at the beginning of June?"

Hermione looked into the fire and answered him in a monotone voice. "It was, but this is very important. What happened that night changed a lot of people and possibly changed the outcome of the war."

Draco looked at her. "Take your time," he said, settling back into his chair determined to not allow his curiosity to push her too far.

* * *

**AN: **_I know. I'm evil! Muhahaha! Anyways, there are 2 versions of chapter 15. One for this website, which is suitable for non-adult readers and a more explict version that will be posted att adultfanfiction dot net for those who are of age to read that sort of thing! Also, I must say, wow at all the reviews I got for the last chapter! You guys overwhelm me! (And I think it might have made my muse a little more productive, so I can actually finish this story!)_

_Bella1992 - It helps for the necklace that I had something to look at to describe it, but the watch was my own creation! I think I just have an overactive imagination. (:p). Thanks!_

_LosingTrack - I'm glad you liked it! These chapters were the easiest for me to write. My muse loves the angst and these chapters are filled it it! Thanks!_

_Kat.1600 - Thank you! Here ya go! (:p)_

_jocat - Thanks! I can do humor every now and then (actually, right now I'm working on a one shot for CSI: NY that is based on the song Carrot Juice Is Murder, and I have one of my friends laughing so hard right now) but mostly I don't try either. I think you just have to have the right personality to write humor all the time, and I obviously don't have it! (:D)_

_blair08 - Thanks. She starts opening up to him this chapter, but when I initially wrote it, it was so long that I decided to break it into two. The next chapter is where she comes fully clean with him. I wonder how he'll react?_

_fanficfan73 - No, he's not married yet, him and Luna will be getting married sometime in the summer. He also got a special extension from the Ministry since he is a teacher. I do plan on focusing a little more on him and Hermione's friendship starting in 17, once the revelation of what happened to Hermione is completely on the table. I will also be giving updates on the rest of the weddings (the twins will have a joint wedding, of course) and I know that at least Ginny's wedding will be in a chapter. But that is subject to change, since I haven't gotten that far in the story yet; I may have more. Thanks!_

_whatifgirl - Thank you very much!_

_imcck - I'm glad you found it! He has changed. Going through the war was traumatic on everyone and since I can't write a normal Draco and Hermione being together, I always change him up a little. Hum. Maybe I should write and evil Hermione? I love the snarkiness that Draco has in the books! (now I must go beat off the plot bunnies of doom...I have to many stories in progress as it is!). Thanks!_

_ReaderforLife - Thanks! I'm glad that you are still liking it!_

_slytherinqueen23 - Wow. 2 reviews! I'm excited! I think is reaction is fairly typical for a man that just received the shocking news, but since I'm not a guy, I can't be for sure. I like the non evil Draco when being paired with Hermione, so I always write him as metaphorically having seen the "light". Thanks for both your reviews! That made my day!_


	15. Condemnation

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**_Here's the next chappie!! Thanks to all who reviewed. As always, please R&R. My muse loves the attention._

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**15. ****Condemnation**

Draco settled back as he watched Hermione obviously struggling with what she was about to tell him. He felt concern for her, but also a little trepidation. Somehow, he knew in his gut that he wasn't going to like what she was about to say. Finally, after finishing her cup of tea, Hermione drew in a breath.

_April 30, 1997_

_Hermione waited until all the teachers were in their quarters and quickly sent the message to meet by the Room of Requirement. When the nine of them arrived, she quickly had them move into position._

_Her, Ron and Harry moved to the corridor where the passage from Honeyduke's let out and got settled behind a gargoyle. She looked at Harry before whispering, "Anything on the Map?"_

_Harry shook his head, "Not yet. We just have to be diligent."_

_Hermione nodded, her mind going over her homework as she waited. After about fifteen minutes, she heard Harry draw in a deep breath. "Oh, Merlin," he said before drawing his wand. "They are coming in on all three fronts. We have to warn the professors!"_

_Hermione looked at them, preparing for battle. "I'll go. You, two stay together. Fight them off as best you can. I promise, I'll be okay." She smiled wryly, "After all, I am the smartest witch in our year." _

_Ron started to protest, but she cut him off with a quick kiss. He finally relented. "Be careful, 'Mione."_

_Hermione nodded as she slipped away, towards the Great Hall and the teacher's quarters. She walked carefully, trying to be as silent as possible. She was almost to the hall, when she heard the stunning spell being yelled out. She turned, trying to block the spell and noticed the three standing by a gargoyle. Then the world went black._

"Oh, Merlin, Mia!" Draco exclaimed. "Why did you go alone? If you knew the Death Eaters were attacking, why split up?"

Hermione sniffed, trying to keep her emotions in check. "Because I thought that I was a match for any Death Eater out there. I thought that by not being with Harry, who was such an obvious target, I might be overlooked. But I was wrong." She sighed before picking up her story again.

_Hermione looked around her at the dark and dank dungeon that she was being held in. She tested the restraints around her wrists, hoping that they would come free. _Just my bloody luck, _she thought when the restraints just tightened on her wrists. She ceased her struggling, knowing that for the meantime it was useless to fight back. _Brightest witch of my generation my bloody arse! If I'm so bloody bright, how did I get myself into this stupid situation?

_She sighed in relief as the restraints eased when she stopped struggling. She felt like a fool. She knew that splitting up from Harry and Ron was a mistake, but she was so sure that she could handle whatever spell anyone could throw at her that she insisted that she would be fine. She tried to look around but, could only feel that she was chained to the wall of a pitch black dungeon, her wand nowhere to be found._

_Suddenly, she jumped. She heard footsteps outside the door. She squinted in pain as the door opened, flooding the room with bright light, which after the complete darkness of the dungeon, blinded her. Her eyes watered as they finally adjusted to the increased light levels and she gasped at the sight in front of her. Lord Voldemort._

_She cringed in disgust as he walked over to her and ran his hand down her face. _

"_Ah. Potter's little Mudblood," he said. "I've wanted to get my hands on you for a long time. I think it's time that you learned your place in the magical world."_

_Hermione cringed at the evil laughter that erupted from his throat. She flinched when his hand moved from her face and started to work its way down her chest. She saw him move his lips, but could not hear any sound due to the blood rushing in her hears. Then she felt a breeze on bare skin and looked down to see than he had made all of her clothes vanish. She whimpered as he began to violate her body…_

_When it was over, she curled up into a ball and wished that she would die._

"Oh, Mia," Draco began, moving to slightly touch her ice cold hand. "I'm so sorry," he whispered, his other hand going to her face and lightly wiping the tears away.

Hermione shook her head, taking another shuddering breath. "There's more," she whispered brokenly.

_When she awoke the next time, she had no sense of how long she had been there. It could have been a day or a week for all she knew. There were two things she prayed for. One was that Harry and Ron would rescue her and the other was that someone would kill her. She knew, without a doubt, that if she had her wand, she would kill herself, but she still couldn't find it. Logically she knew that they had probably broken her wand, leaving her defenceless against them. She heard the door open again and closed her eyes to the blinding light, the fight leaving her body._

_She opened her eyes again when she heard a velvety smooth voice, a voice that she detested almost as much as Voldemort's. Lucius Malfoy. He walked in front of her, filling her vision, his eyes cold and calculating._

"_Finally, we get a chance to prove to you why Mudblood's are inferior to Purebloods," he said, his voice dripping with malice._

_She drew her legs up to her chest, trying to hide herself from his view. "Go to hell, Malfoy," she uttered as a reflex._

"_Oh, no, my dear. It's you that is in hell. My Lord has given you to me, to be my pet," he drawled, enjoying watching her eyes open in fear as he drew out his wand. Within moments, he had her bound to a bed he conjured in the corner of the room and he began to disrobe._

Draco looked at Hermione in shock, not believing her. "You mean my father…" he said haltingly.

Hermione looked at him, emotions swirling in her eyes. "Yes," she said with hatred lacing her voice. "I was your father's plaything," she snarled as she snatched her hand away from him. "Every day, for a month. Some days, he would give me to other people. I lost count of how many people raped me."

Draco retreated to his chair, his head between his hands, which were shaking.

Hermione looked at him, seeing Lucius in him, but trying to separate the two in her mind as she carried on in a monotone voice.

_Hermione looked down at the "food" they had given her. Bread with so much __mould on it that even the rats wouldn't touch it. Rancid water. She couldn't even force herself to touch it, much less eat it. In a way, in the small corner of her mind that still hoped for escape, she knew that she must eat something, lest she wouldn't be able to move when the rescue came. The majority of her hoped that by refusing the rations, she would die. This was the third day that they had given her the rancid food and the third day that she refused to eat it. _

_She had begun to have hallucinations, her mind separating herself from reality to try to protect her, so when the door opened and she heard Ron's voice, she knew that she was dreaming. She didn't even move when she heard Ron mutter, "Bloody Hell! 'Mione? Are you okay?" When she felt a soft hand on her arm, and a cloak being thrown over her body, she jumped in surprise._

_Opening her eyes, she started into Ron's, feeling ashamed and embarrassed. "Ron?" she whispered, her voice hoarse from all the screaming. Ron nodded numbly. "Oh, Merlin. Ron!" she said brokenly as sobs began to rack her body._

_Quickly he unbound her, wrapping her in his cloak and carried her out of the dark dungeon. "Merlin, 'Mione. You're so light," he said, shock lacing his voice._

Hermione looked at Draco, whose pale complexion was even paler than normal. "I still don't know how the found me. I was in and out of consciousness for a week. The malnutrition and dehydration in combination with the filthy conditions in the dungeon caused a major infection in my body. By the time I awoke, the Final Battle was over and Ron and Harry were dead."

For once, Draco seemed to be at a loss for words and when he finally looked at her, she saw loathing and disgust in his eyes. She quickly lowered her eyes, her worst fears coming true.

Draco shook his head before standing. "Um…I—I need some time to process this," he choked out before quickly leaving her quarters.

Hermione sank back into her chair, too emotionally drained to even cry as her heart seemed to break into a million pieces.

* * *

**AN:** _So, there you have it! Do be aware there is a more explicit version of this on adultfanfiction (dot) net. Just go to Harry Potter and then to Draco/Hermione. It's under the same name and the same penname. What'd everyone think?_

_LosingTrack - Here ya go! Thanks!_

_blaire08 - Here is part of his reaction. The rest of it will be in the next chapter! Thanks!_

_whatifgirl - I didn't know about adultfanfiction until another writer mentioned posting there, so don't feel bad! Thanks!_

_ReaderforLife - Yup. I'm very evil. I don't know if y'all will consider this one evil or not. Thanks!_

_imcck - I think Draco has a very typical reaction, but it may be a little bumpy for a while! Thanks!_

_jocat - Did the temper tantrum make you feel better? (lol) That was a great review! You had me laughing! Thanks!_

_crystal - Thank you so much!_

_Bella1992 - Thanks! There are a lot more flashbacks someing up in 17. It's practically all flashbacks!_

_slytherinqueen23 - At least she gets the rest of the story out in this chapter! But there are more flashbacks coming up! Thanks!_

_Kat.1600 - Thank you so much!_

**_Okay guys...If I hit 10 reviews then I'll update the next chapter (it's really short and then I have a huge chapter 17 for y'all)!!_**


	16. Misconceptions

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**_Here's the next chappie!! Thanks to all who reviewed. As always, please R&R. My muse loves the attention._

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**16. ****Misconceptions**

Draco wandered around the halls of Hogwarts for several hours after he left Hermione's quarters. His mind was spinning with all of the secrets she had revealed. Burning utmost in his mind was a blind and savage hatred for his father. He was temped to resurrect his corpse just so he could kill him again.

Finally, when his feet were tired of walking, he retired to his quarters and sat in the chair by the fire to think. He wasn't sure what to do or say. He only knew that the anger bubbling up inside of him couldn't be contained any longer. So he decided to leave, not wanting to take out his anger out on Hermione. Quickly, he threw together some clothes and made a quick fire call.

Once he was sure of his reception, he quickly strode out of the castle and into Hogsmeade so he could Apparate.

An hour later, he made his last Apparation; he walked up to the large beachfront house and knocked on the door. When the door opened, he found himself looking at his dark-haired best friend. He nodded.

"Draco," Blaise said. "What's wrong?"

Draco looked at Blaise; the one friend that he had left that wasn't on the run for being a Death Eater. "Hi to you, too, Blaise," Draco returned sarcastically. "May I at least come in before we have this conversation?"

Blaise opened the door wider, allowing Draco to walk in. Once he had put his things in the guest room, they went to the study to have a drink of Firewhiskey. After the first swallow, Draco looked at his friend. "Have you heard about the Marriage Law?" he asked.

Blaise nodded. "Yes and I'm glad that I don't live in England anymore." Blaise looked at him, the pieces coming together. "So, who are you going to marry?"

Draco sighed. "Hermione Granger."

Blaise sucked in a surprised breath. "I'm sorry, man. Is that why you're here?"

Draco looked down at his glass. "A little bit." He paused. "I've fallen hard, Blaise. She's beautiful, smart, funny and she doesn't hold a grudge against me for what I did in school."

Blaise smirked. "Oh, I think I understand. You've finally met your match and she doesn't feel the same way."

Draco shook his head. "That's not it. I think she might, but…"

Blaise looked at him, confused. "But what?"

Draco was silent for a minute before deciding to continue. "You've got to promise me that you will not tell anyone else what I'm about to tell you, Blaise," he said in a deadly voice.

"Why?"

"Just promise, Blaise."

Blaise nodded his head in confusion. "Okay, fine. Wizard's promise. I will not repeat what I'm about to be told."

Draco nodded, satisfied. "She was captured by Death Eaters a month before the final battle."

Blaise let out a gasp. "So that's why she wasn't in school! I've always wondered about her sudden disappearance the last month of seventh year."

"That's not all. The Dark Lord and my father raped her."

Blaise looked at Draco in shock. The silence was deafening before Blaise could form a response. "Oh, Merlin."

Draco nodded. "I don't know what to do. I've never been around some that was raped before. How do I act?" He shook his head again. "Plus, I have this white hot rage that wants to consume me. If Father was still alive, I'd kill him and take a great amount of pleasure in doing it," he finished with venom lacing his voice.

Blaise sat back, at both the pure hatred in Draco's voice and the depth of feeling he could hear. "You love her," he stated softly.

Draco looked at him in shock, but was unable to deny the truth. "Yeah, I do. But Blaise, both of us know how much I look like my git of a father. He tormented her for a month. There's no way it will ever work," he said in defeat.

Blaise nodded. "The Sorting Hat put you two together for a reason, Drake. I always suspected that you had feelings for her in school. They may have been suppressed, but you don't torment a girl that much without having some feelings." He smirked again. "I was always the quiet one. I saw the way that the both of you looked at each other without looking. I think that she feels the same way. Maybe the Hat put you together so that she can overcome what happened to her."

Draco looked at him in shock. "When did you get so smart?"

Blaise laughed. "I always was, but even then, I was only the second smartest person in our year. Trust her Draco, take it slow and I think you'll be fine. Plus, my mom was a counsellor, so let's just say it runs in my blood." Blaise stood up. "It's late. Why don't you go to bed and then go back tomorrow."

Draco nodded. Feeling hopeful for the first time in hours.

* * *

Hermione sat in her chair for hours, too drained to even cry. She was numb. She couldn't think; she couldn't feel anything. And for once she didn't care. She didn't want to be the strong one anymore. She had no idea how long she sat there, staring at the flickering flames.

Dobby was the one that interrupted her numbness and brought reality crashing back down.

"Miss Hermione? Dobby thinks you need to eat something," the little Elf said softly as he placed a plate in front over her.

"Thank you, Dobby, but I'm not hungry," she replied in a monotone.

Dobby looked at her. "Harry Potter would not want to see you like this Miss Hermione. Neither would Mr. Weasley. You need to eat. Young Mr. Malfoy would not like to see you not eating either," Dobby said trying to convince her to eat.

At the mention of Harry and Ron, pain shot through her heart. But the mention of Draco brought back the memories of the look on his face as he left the room which caused the pain to encompass her heart. She turned to Dobby, no longer numb, with tears streaming down her cheeks. "He doesn't care about me."

"But he does, Miss Hermione! Master Draco was much distraught when he left your quarters earlier. He walked around the castle aimlessly for many hours."

Hermione looked at Dobby, sniffing. "Really?"

Dobby nodded earnestly. "Yes. Now go see him!" he ordered her.

Hermione nodded, wiping the tears off her face with the hope that she had just overwhelmed him. She quickly wrapped herself in a robe and walked quietly towards his quarters. She was close to them when she saw him leaving, with a suitcase in hand.

Fear paralyzed her as she watched him walk out of the castle.

* * *

**AN:**_ Wow. You guys amaze me! This is a really short chapter, but I promise, chapter 17 is much, much longer! While is not the longest chapter I've ever written (have have one that's 10,000 words long for a story I wrote for Charmed), it is the longest chapter I've written for this story! Now, onto the responses!_

_slytherinqueen23 - She just misinterpreted what was going through his head. She thought that the loathing and disgust was directed at her, which is wasn't, but she's kinda emotionaly unstable right now. Hopefully after 17, things will work themselves out (I have written past that yet, so...Eeeks!) Thanks!!_

_vine a nail -Woot! A new reviewer! I feel very sorry for him, too! Thanks!!_

_Kat.1600 - Thanks! I'm glad you liked it!_

_Bella1992 - Was this soon enough? Here are some of this thoughts. Basically, he's just really angry at his father! Thanks!_

_blaire08 - Thank you! This part of the story was actually the first thing I had planned out! It came out of a fit of insomnia!_

_Miss November June - Another new reviewer! I feel so loved!! I hope he doesn't take too long either! I haven't written that yet, so only my muse knows right now! Thanks!_

_ReaderforLife - Here is the requested chapter! For some reason, they are all ending on cliffies! (:s) But, I have a nice long chapter planned for y'all! Hopefully some fluff, too!_

_LosingTrack - Here you go! Thanks!_

_wicked333 - Another new reviewer!! Woot! Now that she's finally admitted fully what happened to her, she can truly begin to heal! Thanks!_

_jocat - You did? Nice! I actually wrote the tame version first, sent that to my beta and then went back and wrote the explicit parts of it. It's easier for me that way. Yes, I agree, there is some very, very odd stuff on that site! I'm actually posting another story on there called Beauty. It starts out HGDM, but will end up somewhere completely different. Thanks for checking both of them out!!_

_whatifgirl - He's grown to think before he acts, so I think he'll be okay, but my muse is kinda quiet on the subject right now! Thanks!_

_mrod8181 - I'm sorry the shortness is killing you, but I promise, 17 will make it up! How 'bout I promise that I'll try to make each at least 2000 words? (:p)_

_riddleandme - Thank you so much! I don't normally write HP, most of what I write is for CSI: NY, but I dabble in other fandoms occastionally! I'm glad you can feel the emotions! That means that I did my job!_


	17. Running Away

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**_Here's the next chappie!! Thanks to all who reviewed. As always, please R&R. My muse loves the attention._

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**17. Running Away**

Hermione stood at the entrance to the castle for fifteen minutes after she could no longer see Draco walking. Numbness had settled over her, for which she was glad since she felt like her heart had been ripped out of her chest. Stifling her sobs with her fist, she ran back to her quarters and threw herself on the bed. Her eyes were dry, but sobs wracked her body and the depression that she had fought off for close to five years overtook her.

The memories that had returned with the telling of the story were as vivid now as they had been when she had endured them. With the memories came the unanswered question. How did Harry and Ron find her?

That simple question had tormented her since she had awoken in the care of Mediwitches. She had asked everyone in the order and no one knew how they had found her. They just knew that one day the pair had left and a week later, they were back at Grimmauld place, carrying her to the first available Healer. They both had rushed out and the final battle had commenced.

It was with those thoughts still swirling in her head, when her body finally succumbed to sleep.

* * *

When Draco awoke the next morning, he was still feeling shock over Hermione's disclosure. He knew that Blaise had made some valid points, but he still didn't feel like he could talk to her about it with letting his anger at his father get the best of him. He really didn't want to hurt her over something that she didn't have any control over. So when the House Elf told him that breakfast was being served, he quickly got dressed and walked down to the sunroom, where Blaise was dining.

Blaise looked up as Draco walked in; he still looked worried. "Drake? You okay?" he asked.

Draco smirked at Blaise. "It's just a lot to take in and I don't want to go back to Hogwarts until I'm sure that I can control my anger. Mia doesn't deserve me yelling at her when I'm really mad at Father."

Blaise studied his friend, revelling in the fact that Draco had finally seemed to grow up. "I understand. You are free to stay here until you have to get back for the start of the next term. I also have an extensive library here with books that deal with psychology, so you might want to read those as well. Maybe they can give you a clue about what you are in for, if and when you can move your relationship to the next level."

Draco gave Blaise a look of shock. "Why do you have books like that?"

Blaise smiled. "Mama had a friend who was raped as a teenager, so she decided to learn what she could about overcoming it. That's why she became a counsellor."

"I didn't know that," Draco said.

Blaise smiled. "Not many people do. Rape victims don't want the stigma that comes with being a victim, so not many come forward. Mama actually went to a Muggle university to get a degree in counselling; she wanted to really help out these women."

Draco sighed. "I just don't understand."

Blaise laughed. "Read the books, Drake. They'll help you understand. A couple of them were written by victims of rape and the viewpoint just makes you really hate a man who would stoop to that level."

Draco nodded in confusion. "I'll check them out," he said rising from the table.

* * *

Hermione awoke to the sound of a relentless tapping on her door. Her heart in her throat, she threw on her robe and ran to open the door. Her face fell when she saw who was standing there. "Hi Neville," she said quietly before standing aside to let him in.

Neville studied her for a moment. "Hi, Mia. Are you okay?" he asked.

Hermione smiled as the lie rolled off her lips, "I'm fine. How are you? Did Christmas at Luna's house go okay?"

Neville smile as he followed Hermione's example and sank into a chair in front of the fire. "It was great. Luna's dad is just as crazy as she is; I can see where she gets her penchant for talking about creatures that we've never heard of before," he said smiling before studying the bags under Hermione's eyes. "Don't tell me that everything is all right, Hermione. I know you better. You haven't been sleeping well since Draco came back to Hogwarts," he gently accused.

Hermione didn't look at him or respond in any manner; she just stared into the flickering flames.

Sighing softly, Neville decided to confront Hermione. "Mia? Why don't you talk about what happened to you when kidnapped? I really think it will help you put your demons to rest."

Hermione turned to him, anger flashing in her eyes. "And what would you know about my demons!" she exclaimed scathingly.

Neville didn't flinch at her tone. If anything he was pleased that she was obviously letting herself feel again. "More than think I do. I know enough to know what Voldemort and Lucius Malfoy did to you, but you never seemed to want to talk about it, so I left you alone with your memories. But, obviously, those memories are beginning to manifest themselves in your dreams due to Draco being back at Hogwarts," he returned calmly.

Hermione stared at him, shock clearly written over her face. "How?" she asked.

Neville leaned forward. "Did you think that it was just Ron and Harry that strove to find you? The entire DA worked hard to locate you." He settled back before calling out for Dobby.

Dobby popped into the room within seconds. "Yes, Professor Neville?"

Neville smiled at the small Elf fondly. "Can you bring us some breakfast, Dobby?"

The Elf smiled as he nodded. "Of course," he said before snapping is fingers. Tea and porridge appeared on the table separating Hermione and Neville quickly before Dobby popped out again, leaving them alone.

Hermione stared at Neville, confusion evident in her eyes.

Neville returned her gaze whilst pouring the tea. "I think it's time you hear the story of how we found you," he said as he picked up his tea cup and settled back into his chair.

_April 30, 1997_

_After Hermione had given them their assignments, Seamus, Neville and Luna quickly walked towards the Whomping Willow, feeling nervous about what they might face. Neville studied Luna and Seamus, feeling his heart racing at the danger they were in. He knew that he couldn't be in better hands. When he had fought with Luna in the Ministry, he had seen what a powerful witch she was. He knew that even though she talked about crazy things, she was probably the most observant of anyone in the sixth or seventh year. Seamus had picked up on a lot of things whilst living in the same dorm as Harry and Ron, so Neville knew that he had skills that could be put of good use._

_As they got into place, Neville settled down on the ground and looked around. The only place that had a good line of sight while being out of sight of the Willow was in the Forbidden Forest and all three had reservations about waiting in there._

_Luna took control and quickly cast a Disillusion Spell on all three of them. Both of the men gazed down in amazement, since neither of them had been able to perfect the charm._

"_Bloody amazing job, Luna!" Seamus exclaimed._

_Luna smiled a mysterious smile. "Thank you, Seamus. It also helps to guard you against the Midnight Crymple Snorks. They are very prevalent this time of year," she said in a breathless voice._

_Seamus couldn't control his laughter and Neville just smiled softly in admiration for her talents._

_They hadn't been waiting long when they saw the Whomping Willow stop moving. Drawing their wands in readiness, they watched as black figures began to emerge from underneath the immobilized tree._

_Neville quickly pulled out his coin and sent the message that there were Death Eaters coming from the Whomping Willow._

_Confidant in their concealment, the three students began to creep up behind the group of disguised figures. Neville drew a deep breath, concentrating on the fact that some of these people were responsible for the fact that his parents were in St. Mungo's. Quickly, he shouted out, "STUPIFY!"_ _and watched as one of the Death Eaters feel immobile. Gaining confidence, he quickly shouted out other spells as the Luna and Seamus followed suit._

_The battle__ raged for what seemed like forever, all three getting wounded with cutting charms, but none of the three seemed to notice the blood flowing freely. Finally, all of the Death Eaters had been immobilized and Neville bound them with a rope spell and left them. He looked at Seamus and Luna and nodded. "We need to get back to the castle. The Death eaters must have entered more than one place; otherwise, the others would have come to back us up."_

_Luna nodded, losing all pretence of being scatterbrained. "Let's go," she said simply whilst taking off in a sprint for the doors of the castle._

_When they arrived, they found chaos. A multitude of Death Eaters were firing spells towards a group of students. Neville studied the situation and saw Ron and Harry at the forefront, firing spells right back. From what he could tell, the Death Eaters were doing a bit better. _Where are the teachers,_ he thought. Turning he looked at Seamus. "Seamus, go to the teacher's quarters and get them down here!" he yelled before turning back and joining Luna who was already firing spells at the Death Eaters._

_From out of nowhere, more Death Eaters joined the fight and quickly the students were becoming overwhelmed, until a group of teachers dressed in night clothes and robes joined the fight. Quickly, the tide turned and within moments, the remaining Death Eaters fled in retreat._

_The mingled group of students and teachers milled around the entrance hall, with the teachers being shocked by the attack. Neville looked at Harry and Ron who were searching frantically for Hermione. "Where's Hermione?" Ron called out. He looked at Professor McGonagall. "Professor, she was supposed to go get you? Where is she now?" he asked frantically._

_Professor McGonagall looked at him. "I don't know, Mr. Weasley. Seamus is the one that alerted us to the attack," she told him._

_Neville could see the panic that filled Ron and Harry's eyes. "She went for you when we first saw that the Death Eaters were attacking from three directions!" he yelled in panic before turning to Harry. "Harry, look at the map? Is she on there?"_

_Harry quickly withdrew the piece of parchment from his pocket and tapped his wand against it. He scanned the map and he face fell. "She's not on it," he murmured, thinking the worst. "Either she's been captured or…"_

"_No! She can't be dead!" Ron interrupted him._

_Neville shook his head, feeling his heart begin to pound in dread. "We need to search the castle," he said quietly to Professor McGonagall, who nodded her head in agreement._

"_Professors! Search the castle! All you students please return to your common rooms."_

_The members of the DA got thunderous looks on their faces and shook their head. "No," Harry stated baldly. "I warned you that the attack was coming! I warned you and the Order and you didn't listen! The nine of us are the ones that stood here to fight against the Death Eaters. We are not returning to our common rooms! We will help you search." He stared defiantly at the remaining professors._

_Finally, Professor McGonagall shook her head. "All right, Harry. You eight can join the search, but the rest of the students," she said motioning to the other students who had bravely come out to the battle, "will return to their common rooms."_

_Harry shook his head and the DA split up once again to begin the search._

_Neville, Luna and Seamus began to make their way towards the Great Hall, walking carefully and studying everything carefully. It was Luna who found Hermione's wand. She walked over to it, picking it up carefully. "Oh dear," she said. "This is Hermione's wand."_

_Neville closed his eyes, already thinking the worst. He knew that the Death Eaters could have easily killed Hermione after they disarmed her, but the fact that there was no body, made his blood run cold in terror. He knew that since she was muggle born and one of Harry's best friends, she would be tortured for any information they could get out of her._

_It was with a heavy heart that they returned to the entrance hall and waited for others to arrive._

Neville studied Hermione, who had grown pale during his story. "Mia? Of all of us, I probably had the best idea of what kind of torture that you would face, after what had happened with my parents. I can tell you that Ron and Harry beat themselves up every day for letting you go on your way alone." He gazed at Hermione, who had begun to tear up as her memories returned. "All of the DA worked hard to find you. I can probably tell you anything you want to know about your rescue, if you want me to."

Hermione looked at him, shocked for the countless time that day. "Really? How did they find me?"

Smiling, Neville leaned back to continue the story.

_May 1, 1997_

_After a short night in which very few members of the DA actually slept, the eight remaining members gathered in the Room of Requirement. Harry and Ron had thunderous looks on their faces. Neville met their eyes and nodded, understanding their anger. "What's the plan," he asked quietly._

_Ron looked to angry to speak, so Harry is the one that answered him. "We find her, without the bloody Order. They refused to listen to us and I refuse their help now."_

_Ron nodded emphatically acknowledging his agreement._

_Neville looked to Luna and Ginny, who both were pacing nervously, but Dean is the one that dared to ask the question. "What makes you think that she is still alive?"_

_Neville watched as Ron's face turned bright red, almost matching his hair. Ginny jumped forward to restrain him. "Ron! Don't hurt him! He has a valid question. Hermione is Muggle born and you know that the Death Eaters thrive on killing anyone that is not a Pureblood."_

_Neville nodded. "Ron, it's more than likely she is still alive, but Death Eaters will torture her for information on Harry and how to get close enough to kill him."_

_Ron seemed to calm down a lot at but Neville continued, "But they will and probably already are torturing her. I want to warn you that she might not ever be the same if we are able rescue her."_

_Ron looked at him. "How do you know that," he spat out._

_Neville drew a deep breath, knowing that only one person in the room knew his secret. His eyes rose to meet Ron's, his gaze unwavering. "I know because both of my parents are in St. Mungo's in a permanently catatonic state due to being tortured by Death Eaters," he returned quietly._

_Gasps filled the room and he looked down at his feet, the pain of losing them yet not being able to mourn them cutting him deeply. He felt a soft hand on his arm and looked up into Luna's clear blue eyes. "I'm sorry," she said so softly that he was the only one who could hear her words. "We'll find Hermione before that happens."_

_Neville nodded. "We need to start looking for her now. The quicker we start, the more likely we are to find her."_

_Ginny nodded. "I agree. What can we do to find her?"_

_Dean cleared his voice. "What about some sort of Scrying Spell? Somehow we can pinpoint her location?"_

_Both Harry and Ron shrugged in defeat. Dean, Seamus and Ginny looked around the room, clearly racking their brains for something to help the find their fallen friend, but it was Luna who answered their question. She bit her lip and sighed. "There is a potion that I read about for Slughorn's class, but I don't know what the ingredients are."  
_

"_Did you read about it in the potions book?" Neville asked._

_Luna shook her head. "No, it was only referenced there. I think it might be in a book in the restricted section of the library. But I don't know how to get to the book."_

_Harry smiled. "I know. I have an invisibility cloak. Two, maybe three people can fit under the cloak."_

_Ginny furrowed her brow. "But what about the spells around the restricted section? How do we bypass those? We have to get the teacher's to clear us to go into that section."_

_Neville smiled. "Leave that to me. I've been talking to Professor Sprout about doing an internship, so I can become a Master Herbologist. She's given me access to the restricted section to research deadly plan__ts. How about I go in with Luna and we can look for the book?"_

_Harry nodded. "That sounds like a plan. Neville, come with me to the dorm room and I'll loan you my cloak."_

_Neville nodded and left the room with Harry._

_Less than an hour later, he was in the Library with Luna underneath the cloak beside him. He nodded to Madame Pince as he walked towards the section, feeling the breeze beside him as Luna kept up._

_Soon they were in the caged off section of the library, with Luna directing him to the section with the potions books. "What was the book name?" Neville asked quietly._

"_I'm not sure. It was Most Potente Potions and how to make them; it was something that sounded older than that."_

_Nodding, Neville walked towards the oldest section of books. Most books in this section just looked like pieces of parchment that were bound by hand. Both of them scanned the titles until he heard Luna gasped. "That's it. Spells and Potions of Ancient Greek. Pull that one down and let's scan through it."_

_Neville nodded as he carefully pulled the book off it's shelf, disturbing a great deal of dust in the process. He pressed his lips together, trying to hold in the inevitable sneeze as the dust found its way up his nose. Quickly he knelt down, opening the book on the floor while Luna slipped out from under the cloak._

_Luna scanned the pages quickly, the archaic form of English that it was in posing no problems for her. "Here it is," she whispered in triumph. "Oh, Merlin, these ingredients are going to be tough to get."_

"_Why? What do we need?"_

"_Mandrake root, unicorn hair, the blood of a Dragon, hoarsbane, a phoenix tear. And that's not even the half of them," Luna muttered as she began to transcribe the potion onto a piece of paper to take with them._

_Neville cringed, knowing that some of the ingredients weren't even available in Professor Slughorn's stores. "How are we going to get these?" he whispered._

_Luna shook her head. "I don't know," she returned as she finished writing out the list. "We'd better get back to the room."_

_Neville quickly slipped the book back into place and quickly exited the Library._

_When they were back in the Room, the rest of the DA looked at the expectantly. They exchanged a glance, but neither of them wanted to be the one to break the bad news to the group._

"_Well," Harry finally said, twitching in anticipation. "Did you find it?"_

_Luna took a breath. "Yes, we did, but the ingredient list is going to be difficult," Luna stated as she handed the list over to Harry. "Most of the ingredients are things that only Slughorn has access to, and some of them, even he doesn't have."_

_Harry and Ron studied the list, quickly deciding what ingredients they could get at the castle. "We can slip into the potion stores and get these, but it leaves six things that are not available here at Hogwarts. Dragon's blood, unicorn hair, hoarsbane, a tear of a Phoenix, the skin of a Peruvian dragon toad and doxy bullocks. I have no idea where to get those."_

_Luna smiled. "I have some unusual contacts. Leave that to me. I can probably have them in about a week. It says here that the potion takes a fortnight to brew. Surely, she can hold on for that period of time."_

_Ron held his tongue, he obviously didn't think so, but he knew that this was the only chance they had of getting Hermione back._

_Three weeks later, the potion was done. All the group lacked to do was add something personal of Hermione's so that the potion could seek her out. The eight of them stood nervously around the cauldron. Luna nodded to Ginny, who carefully dropped a couple of pieces of hair into the cauldron which caused it to bubble manically._

_Then a great cloud of smoke erupted from the cauldron, causing the group to cough. When the smoke cleared, a house was hovering above the bubbling potion._

"_Is that where she is?" Seamus asked. "Whose house is that?"_

_Everyone shook their head in defeat except for Luna. "That's the Crouch Manor. Daddy interviewed Mr. Crouch Sr. when his son was first convicted. He said the place was infested with gnarly grumps. He said the infestation was out of control and Mr. Crouch refused his help in getting rid of them."_

_Harry nodded. "So how do we get there?"_

"_Daddy took me out there once. I know how to get there, but I must gather some supplies to protect ourselves from the gnarly grumps."_

_The rest of the group tried to hide the eye rolls at her statement, but was willing to let her go her way since she was the one to find out how to locate Hermione. They agreed to meet back in the Room in an hour, so that they could prepare to leave._

_Two hours later, the eight members of the DA were standing outside the decrepit Crouch Manor. It was early afternoon, but they knew they wouldn't be able to attack until later on that night. They settled back to study the house._

_It was close to four a.m. when the last person finally cleared out of the house and the lights went out. Slowly the group split up into smaller groups of four. Ginny, Seamus, Dean and Colin took the back whilst the rest of the group took the front. Harry watched in amazement as Luna carefully took down the wards on the house and they slipped in unnoticed. The plan was for Harry and Ron to search for Hermione underneath the concealment of his cloak, while the rest of them would disable as many Death Eaters as possible._

_They crept through the house, thankful for the concealing darkness. Harry and Ron decided to search the bottom floors, while Neville and Luna strove to keep a clear path for retreat. They went room to room, searching for any Death Eaters. Soon, they stumbled across a group of Death Eaters playing some sort of game. The Death Eaters noticed the door opening slowly, so Neville and Luna began to fire spells back at them._

_The fight continued on for what seemed like an eternity until Neville heard Ron yelling that they had Hermione. Quickly, Luna and him shot off their final spells and retreated, running for the safety and concealment of the woods._

_Panting, the group met at the rendezvous point and together, Apparated to Grimmauld place._

Hermione looked at Neville in shock. "I don't remember anything other than believing that Ron and Harry were hallucinations."

Neville nodded. "You were pretty out of it. When we got back to the house, Harry called for Healers to come to the house and put you in their care. Both him and Ron were livid because they finally knew how bad it had been for you. On the way back, you kept murmuring in your sleep about Lucius Malfoy and we all knew what he'd done to you."

Hermione stared at him. "Thank you."

Neville smiled. "No need to thank me, Hermione. But you should know that Harry and Ron chose to confront Voldemort the next day. They knew that the Death Eaters were up in arms because we had rescued you. Ron was the one that confronted Malfoy. He told me when we were preparing for the battle that he would destroy him."

Hermione felt a couple of tears roll down her face. "I wish he hadn't because now I have to marry Malfoy."

Neville looked at her, sensing the underlying tension in her voice and realizing that he had not seen Draco since he'd gotten back. "What happened?" he asked gently.

"I told him and he left. I watched him walk away from the castle, suitcase in hand," she muttered.

Neville settled back, thinking over all he had learned about Draco since he became a Professor. "Did he leave for good, or did he just need some time to process what you told him. Think about, Mia. You just told him that his father, whom he looks a lot like, raped you repeatedly. I'd need some space too."

Hermione looked at Neville in shock. "I'd never thought about that!"

Neville smiled. "Listen, Mia. I watched the two of you interact. He has feelings for you. Give him some time and I think he will be able to come to terms with it." Neville glanced at his watch. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some papers to grade before the students get back from holiday."

Hermione nodded, feeling a little of the despair leaving her body as she contemplated everything that she had just learned.

* * *

**AN:** _Okay, guys. A nice long chapter for you! I will warn you that I do not have the next chapter written yet, but I'm going to try to do that over the weekend, so I'm hoping for no lag time between the next chapters!! And might I say that y'all have completely overwhelmed me! 17 reviews for just 16 alone! I'm speechless!_

_LosingTrack - Thanks! I'm glad you liked it!!_

_spikeecat - Yeah! A new reviewer!! Thanks! As you can see, she has some really good friends, so I think they'll be okay for now!_

_jocat - I thought I'd congratulate y'all for reviewing! Hopefully, when I get the story written, I might do something that when I get a certain number of reviews, I'll update the next chapter, but I haven't finished it yet, so that'll be a little ways off! I'm not going to have a lot of Blaise in this story, but he may pop up a couple more times. (:p) Thanks!_

_whatifgirl - Thanks! I'm glad you liked it!!_

_wicked333 - I've sucked you in, haven't I? (smirking a Malfoy like smirk right now) I'm glad you like it! Thanks!_

_Readerforlife - Thanks! Normally I only post weekly, but my muse took about a 2 month vacation and as a result, I have not more chapters prewritten! (:s) But, I do have the weekend and I am solely going to focus on this story, so I have hopes!_

_blaire08 - Thanks! He lives on the Italian Riviera, on the beach, just 'cause that's where I want to live!_

_Spooky Biscuits of Doom - Yeah! A new reviewer, and I love your penname! Thanks!!_

_So Wrong It's Right - Another new reviewer! Woot! Thank you! I'm trying to!!_

_Miss November June - Thanks! Draco has really grown up and I like to showing him acting mature. It won't all be wine and roses, though. They have a rocky path ahead of them!_

_woaivampireboys - Thank you!!_

_vine a nail - Maybe it hints at hidden depths at her. After all, she is a rape counselor, not a marriage counselor!! (lol) Thanks!_

_Bella1992 - I love Blaise, too. I don't use him very much though! He is playing a larger role in an adult story that I've been writing, though! Thanks!_

_Kat.1600 - Me, too! Thanks!!_

_Aphina - Wow. I can't believe you read it all in the same night!! You are getting more! You got this chapter before anyone else (beside's C!!) I'm working on it this weekend, so maybe you'll have 3-5 chapters at the beginning of the week!!_

_slytherinqueen23 - You may have to wait until next chapter for Draco and Hermione talking, but my muse thought it was time to reveal how she was rescued!! Thanks!_

_BubblyMalfoy - Wow...Another new reviewer! Here you go! I hope you like it! Thanks!!_

**_Wow, guys. I'm still overwhelmed! I love all the reviews!!_**


	18. Cold Shoulder

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**_Here's the next chappie!! Thanks to all who reviewed. As always, please R&R. My muse loves the attention._

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**18. Cold Shoulder**

When Hermione awoke the morning after her talk with Neville, she had a little more hope in her heart. Her logical side was telling her that she had just shocked Draco, but her heart remembered the look of disgust in his eyes after she had finished her story. Sighing as she got out of bed, she refused to let her hope over take her completely.

She got up and dressed before making her way to the Great Hall to have breakfast with the professors that were present. She looked at the table, only a few people were there, and her heart sank as she realized that Draco was not present. Plastering a smile on her face, she quickly sat down next to Neville and began to put food on her plate.

"How are you feeling?" Neville asked, softly enough that she was the only one that heard him.

"I'm fine," she responded, false cheer lacing her voice.

Neville shot her a look, clearly not believing her, but as she avoided his gaze he let the subject drop. "So are you ready to start preparing the students for their O.W.L.S and N.E.W.T.S.?

Hermione tried not to let her gratitude show with the change of topic. "I am. I've been trying to prepare them all year for how hard the course work gets, but you know that half of them are barely passing as it is."

Neville nodded his agreement. "I know, but I have high hopes for this year's lot," he responded, intent on steering the conversation to topics that would take her mind off of Draco.

* * *

Draco looked out of the window, watching the waves lapping at the white sand. Sadly, he gazed at the water rushing in and then ebbing back into the abyss, mirroring his feelings. The books that he had read from Blaise's library had sobered him immensely. One of the books had been written from the perspective of the rape victim. He could honestly say that he hated some people of his gender.

Draco sighed and finally moved away from the window. Logically, he knew that he needed to go back to Hogwarts and talk to Hermione, but he was terrified of her reaction. _I wouldn't blame her if she never wanted to see me again,_ he thought. It was in this contemplative mood that Blaise found him.

"Drake? Why are you moping around like a Hufflepuff?" he asked from the doorway.

Draco bristled at the implication in Blaise's voice. "I am not moping," he returned with indignation.

Blaise smirked, knowing exactly what buttons to push. "Yes, you are! The Draco that I grew up with would never wallow in self pity. Here you are, sitting in my house when you should be at Hogwarts! I thought you were in love with her," he sneered.

Draco stood up, anger tinting his cheeks pink. "I do love her! I just don't know how to approach her. This is not something that I have experience in Blaise," he returned hotly.

"So? That's never stopped you before."

Draco growled in his frustration. "Fine. I can tell when I'm not wanted," he said as he magicked his clothes into his bag and shrank it within seconds. In a huff, Draco stalked out of the seaside house and quickly Apparated back to Hogwarts.

Blaise stared at the empty room, chuckling to himself. "Good luck, Drake."

* * *

It wasn't until Draco was in his room that he realized how well Blaise had played him. He shook his head with a smile and dropped his luggage off in his room. He strode quickly through the hallways until he was standing in front of her door. He raised his hand to knock on the door, but at the last second faltered. Slowly, he lowered his hand back down and his shoulders slumped.

Finally, he came to a decision and walked quickly away from the door. He found himself in front of the gargoyle guarding Professor McGonagall's office. The gargoyle watched him pacing back and forth with a gleam in its eye. Finally, he muttered the password and the gargoyle jumped to the side so he could ascend the staircase.

"Professor Malfoy?" McGonagall greeted him. "How may I help you?"

Draco stood before her, feeling like he was eleven again. Finally, he responded, "Um…Headmistress. Do you know what happened to Hermione during the war?"

Minerva stared at him, her gaze penetrating. "More than you do, most likely," she responded vaguely.

"She told me about being captured," Draco responded softly.

Minerva nodded, sensing his confusion. "That was a horrible time for her. Did she tell you what she almost did?"

Draco looked at her in confusion. "What?"

Minerva sighed. "The following year, after the War was over, she tried to take her own life," she revealed reluctantly. She knew that Draco needed to here what she was telling him, but it didn't make the telling any easier.

Draco's head shot up in surprise. "What?! Why?" he queried, and then cringed at the glare that he received from the older woman.

"She was depressed and thought it was the only way to end her pain. Had it not been for those close to her, she would have succeeded. We kept a close eye on her after that, but I fear she's never dealt with her feelings."

Draco nodded, some of what he'd read coming back to him. "I don't know how to treat her," he admitted grudgingly.

"Treat her as you have been," McGonagall advised. "This doesn't change her from the person that you've come to know these last few months. It just reveals part of her that you hadn't seen. It will explain some things about her behaviour." She paused before adding to her advice, "The hat put you two together for a reason, believe in that."

Draco nodded. "Thank you, Headmistress. I'll keep that in mind," he said as he got up to leave.

"Draco?" she responded as he got to the door. "Seek out her friends. They can help you if she refuses to let you in."

Draco nodded and slowly walked down the stairs and headed for his quarters.

* * *

Hermione greeted the first day of the new term with a zeal, eager to push all thoughts of her personal life to the dark corner of her mind where they had hidden for the previous five years. She got up, resolutely ignoring her feelings. She hadn't even responded to Ginny's owl asking if she was all right. As she got dressed, she pushed her thoughts to the lesson plans for the fifth and seventh year students, eager to help them to begin to prepare for their end of year exams.

She was so engrossed in her thoughts that when she walked into the Great Hall and saw Draco sitting in his usual seat, her heart dropped in surprise.

Draco looked up when Hermione walked into the hall and caught the one moment that she let her guard down. When she looked at him, he saw hurt, anger and confusion swirling around before her expression went completely blank. Draco blinked momentarily, not sure if he had seen the pain at all. He watched as she made her way to the table, and then looked up in shock when she choose not to sit by him.

Hermione looked at Draco from across the room before making her way to the table. She looked at the available seats and chose a spot next to Hagrid, at the opposite end of the table. She resolutely ignored the looks that he was sending her, determined to let nothing ruin her day.

Once breakfast was finished, she made a move to get out of the hall and to her classroom, so that she would not have to talk to anyone, however, Draco was anticipating that move. Quickly, when he saw that she had been detained by a student's question, he made his way to the hallway that contained her classroom. Patiently he waited for her to come down the hall, and when he saw her, he approached her cautiously. "Mia?" he asked quietly.

"Pardon me, Professor. I'm in a rush to make it to my class," Hermione said without emotion as she passed him.

Draco stepped back in shock, not expecting her coldness towards him. "Hermione?" he called again, a little louder as she disappeared into the classroom. Shaking his head, as he saw the students begin to fill the hall, he retreated to the dungeons, his own classes to worry about.

* * *

**AN: **_Okay guys, I'm sorry about the extra week wait, but real life kinda got in the way! I'm almost halfway through 19, so I hope to have that posted as normal on next Thursday! This is, of course, if the severve weather here doesn't knock out my power again!_

_Miss November June - There will be some sweet parts. Draco in particular is being very sweet in 19 so far! Unfortunately, Hermione is a little bit stubborn, but I think Draco and her friends will finally get through to her! Thanks!_

_LosingTrack - Here you go! Thanks for waiting patiently!!_

_slytherinqueen23 - It was weird because I hadn't even thought out how they had rescued here and there goes my muse insisting that I write this! I'm glad you liked it. I like Neville, and he's playing a more important role that I had initially anticipated, but hey, it was good! Thanks!_

_ReaderforLife - Thanks! Neville has a place in my heart, I just can't not due him justice!_

_blaire08 - Thanks! Maybe he should take a second job with Ginny..._

_jocat - I'm glad you liked Neville and I can always due more Blaise (I've come to love him through fan fiction!) and I don't consider it a flame! Have faith, just because she understands on an intellecutal level, doesn't mean that she's going to forgive and forget any time soon (as you can tell from this chapter). Expect some really rocky paths ahead for them and Draco just leaving, even if it was to think, has caused their relationship to step back a bit. I love Luna, and tend to use her whenever I can! Thanks for the long review, they make my day!!_

_Kat.1600 - Thanks! Luna is great!_

_Bella1992 - Yes, Luna is very unique and I tend to write her completely normal at one time and completely insane the next! Thanks!_

_Angel 737 - Thanks! I just can't write Hermione and Draco together with Harry and Ron alive! It's a quirk of mine (unless I'm writing in a completely different AU). I'm glad that you're liking it!_

_Aphina - So, how many times did you have to read it before you could beta it? (lol) Thank you! It was very elaborate...now if I can just get that with BB! You can hug them both!_

_Spooky Biscuits of Doom - Thanks!!_

_wicked333 - I'm good at hooking people (lol). Thanks!_


	19. Surprise!

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**_Here's the next chappie!! Thanks to all who reviewed. As always, please R&R. My muse loves the attention._

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**Chapter 19. Surprise!**

A week had passed since Draco had come back from Blaise's. He had tried several times to corner Hermione, but she was adeptly avoiding him, and he didn't know how. The only thing that he could think of was that with all the time she had spent running around the castle with Harry and Ron, she had knowledge of passageways that he didn't. The only time that he had seen her was at meal times; even then she was sitting at the opposite end of the table from him.

He was so frustrated that he'd considered asking the House Elves for assistance, but he couldn't seem to work up the courage.

Neville watched the development carefully, assessing the situation before deciding to intervene. So, on the Saturday after the start of term, he confronted Hermione in her quarters before breakfast. "Mia? Why are you avoiding Malfoy?" he asked her bluntly.

Hermione's head shot up at the question. "I'm not," she answered hesitantly.

Neville just shook his head. "That's bollocks and you know it. I've been watching you for the past week and every time he gets near you run the opposite direction. What's going on in that brain of yours?"

Hermione just sighed. "I don't need to hear that he's found a way to prevent us from getting married," she replied softly.

Neville raised an eyebrow. "Why? I thought that was want you wanted?" he asked carefully.

Hermione looked into the fire for a couple of minutes before choosing to respond. "I know, but that was before I came to know him," she admitted. When Neville didn't respond, she continued, "He's nothing like his git of a father, and that surprised me. He's easy to talk to, we actually have a lot in common and I didn't expect that."

Neville looked at her carefully, her quiet words a confirmation. "You love him," he stated simply.

Hermione looked up at him. "Yeah, I think I do, but there's no way he can feel the same way." She looked down at her hands in sorrow. "With all the Pureblood crap that he grew up with, there's just no way this will ever work. He might bend enough to count me as a friend, but never as anything more than that."

"How do you know that? Did he say that?" Neville queried. "He has changed, Mia. Even I can see that."

Hermione just shook her head. "When you are taught to hate for the first seventeen years of your life, it's impossible to change."

Neville felt his heart break at the simple words said in utter defeat. Grimly, he decided to stick up for Draco, even though his feelings toward the man were still less than charitable. "No, it's not, Mia. Yes, it is hard to change, but don't you think that with all he suffered during the War he deserves for you to give him a chance? The War affected so many people, both good and bad. Everyone deserves a second chance."

Hermione looked at him, confusion shining in her eyes. "So have you forgiven him?" she asked in surprise.

Neville winced at the bold question before exhaling quietly. "Not completely, but I do respect what he's done. It took a lot of guts to come back here knowing that people were not going to be happy that he was here. Knowing that even though the Ministry cleared him, some people were always going to believe that he was his father's son. Look at how we all treated him at the beginning of the year. You were the only one besides Minerva that was willing to give him a chance. What changed your mind? Did he show you that he really did take the Dark Mark?"

Hermione looked at him before she got up to leave the room. "What changed was the look of total disgust in his eyes as I finished telling him what happened to me. I can't do this, Neville. I just—can't."

Neville felt his heart drop at the depressed tone she was speaking with, but he knew when it was pointless to argue with her. "Fine. I'll drop the subject for now, but you're going to have to talk to him, Mia. Sooner or later—and for your sanity you should do it sooner."

* * *

Draco awoke Saturday morning, determined to make Hermione talk to him. She couldn't escape to her classes, so he felt a little more hope. He rose earlier than he had planned in hopes that he could catch her before she had a chance to run away. He had been planning this since Wednesday, when he finally concluded that she was not going to be easy to find.

After he dressed, he called out to Dobby and the little Elf arrived with only a moment's delay.

"Yes, Master Draco?" he asked.

"Dobby, is Hermione still in her quarters?"

"Yes, Master Draco. Master Neville is in with her right now," he answered quickly.

"Thank you, Dobby. Can you let me know when she is alone? I have a surprise planned for her," Draco returned.

Dobby nodded his head emphatically. "Yes, Master Draco," he said before he disappeared.

Draco smirked as the little Elf left and got ready to put his plan into motion. He gathered up all the supplies he had acquired over the previous few days and set out to the Room of Requirement to put the first stage of the plan into motion.

About an hour had passed when Dobby returned. "Master Neville has left Miss Hermione's quarters," he reported.

Draco nodded before thanking the Elf. "Thank you, Dobby. Can you do me another favour?" At the Elf's nod, he continued, "I've got Hermione's surprise in the Room of Requirement, but I don't want her to know that she is meeting me, lest she figure out the surprise. Can you make sure that she comes to the room in about an hour?"

Dobby looked doubtful, his loyalty to Hermione showing. Draco saw his indecision and pressed a little further. "Please? I really want to surprise her."

Dobby finally nodded. "Miss Mia has been very down…"

"I'm going to try and make her happy," Draco interjected.

Dobby contemplated for another moment before finally agreeing. "Okay, but if you hurt Miss Mia…" he trailed off in a menacing voice.

"I promise. I'm not going to hurt her," Draco said solemnly.

Dobby nodded, not quite believing him, but willing to give him a chance. With one final threatening look, Dobby disappeared.

* * *

Draco was getting ready to leave his quarters when a knock sounded on his door. Feeling nervous, he opened the door only to find Neville standing there. Looking at him with curiosity, he said, "Professor, what can I do to help you?"

Neville looked at him, his expression guarded. "Why did you leave Hermione?" he asked neutrally.

Draco fought off a sarcastic reply. "When?"

Neville fought the urge to roll his eyes. "After she told you what had happened to her?" he replied instantly.

Draco sighed before opening the door fully and gesturing for Neville to come inside. "Look, not that it's any of your business, but I was in shock. I needed time to think."

"Think about how you could end it?" Neville shot back.

"No!" Draco yelled, his anger rising. "Look Longbottom, I am fully aware of how much like my father I look and trust me, that doesn't make me happy. Merlin, I was so upset when she told me that I wanted to find a way to resurrect his corpse and kill him myself! I've come to care for Mia and it breaks me to hear what she had to endure."

Neville's eyes bore into Draco's, sensing the truth behind his words. Finally, he sighed before sticking out his hand. "Then you have my support. I tried to tell her that you just needed time to process everything, but she's not listening to me."

Draco stared at Neville's hand in amazement before grasping it into a firm handshake. "Thank you."

Neville smiled at him before tightening his grip fractionally. "Just remember, you hurt her, you'll regret it."

Draco knew that Neville was not joking about that. "I'll do everything in my power not to hurt her," he said solemnly.

Neville nodded and left Draco's quarters.

Smiling, knowing that he had the support of her friends, Draco left to go to the Room of Requirement to finish setting up.

* * *

Hermione was sitting in her quarters, staring at Ginny's latest owl wondering how long it would take the younger girl to send a Howler, when Dobby appeared. She looked up at the Elf in startlement. "Dobby?"

"Miss Mia, please come with me to the Room of Requirement," he stated simply.

Hermione shook her head. "Dobby, I don't want to leave my quarters," she returned morosely.

Dobby shook his head. "No Miss Mia, you must come! Dobby has a surprise for you."

Hermione stared at him fondly before sighing. "All right."

Dobby bounced in his excitement. "Good!" Then he snapped is fingers and her clothes changed from her simple jeans and T-shirt to an elegant black skirt and pale pink blouse. She was even wearing her favourite pair of knee high stilettos.

Hermione looked down at her outfit with a genuine smile. "So, I was underdressed?" she asked.

Dobby just motioned for her to follow him and soon they were standing outside of the room. "Go in, Miss Mia," he said.

Hermione looked at him nervously. "Aren't you coming in with me?"

Dobby shook his head. "No, this is part of the surprise. Now go in," he said insistently.

Hermione sighed and slowly opened the door while biting her bottom lip. She walked inside to find the little Parisian café that Draco had created for them and was tempted to turn around and leave. In fact she did turn, only to find that the door disappeared.

"The door won't be visible until you let me talk to you," a quiet voice said.

Hermione whipped her head around towards the voice. "What? You can't seriously hold me hostage, Malfoy," she spat out.

"I'm not holding you hostage. I'm making you listen to what I have to say," he responded quietly. "If you want to leave after you hear me out, then you can."

Hermione looked at him; he was wearing a nice pair of black slacks and what looked like a black silk shirt. She glanced at his eyes, which were pleading with her. She shook her head. "Fine. I don't think it will change anything."

Draco sighed in relief. The worst scenario he'd come up with was that she had hexed him into oblivion and the fact that she had agreed to at least listen to him, was a step in the right direction. "Please, sit," he said, holding the chair out for her.

Hermione sat down reluctantly. "So…"

Draco sat down, taking a sip of the wine that had already been poured. "When you told me what had happened to you, I was overwhelmed. I don't think you know how strong you are to have survived that. Anyway, I felt shock, disgust at what my father did and a blinding rage. I knew that I had to get away or I would take what I was feeling out on you and that wouldn't be fair."

Hermione's felt her flutters of hope begin in her heart. "Why did you leave for so long?" she ventured.

"I really didn't mean to, but I went to Blaise's and found out that his mother was a rape counsellor. He had a lot of books in his library that gave me an insight to what you had to endure."

"So you told Blaise?" Hermione asked in a carefully neutral tone.

Draco looked at her, deciding that honesty was the best policy. "Yeah, but I made him swear a wizard's oath that he wouldn't repeat it. If he does, he'll be stripped of his magic."

Hermione sighed, not happy that someone else knew, but accepting of the lengths that Draco went through to try and protect her. "All right. Go on."

"Anyway, I knew that I couldn't talk to you that night. I was so angry with my father, the bastard," he said scathingly, "that I wanted to reanimate his corpse and kill him myself." Hermione smiled. "But, like I said, I didn't want to take that out on you. You don't deserve that."

Hermione smiled again. "Thank you. I'm sorry that I wouldn't let you talk to me; I just tried to bury my head in the sand."

Draco reached across the table and grasped her hand lightly, running his thumb over her knuckles. "I care about you, Mia," he said softly before rising from his seat. Hermione let out a gasp when he dropped to one knee before her and pulled out a ring box. "Even though we technically don't have a choice, I want to do this," he began nervously as he opened the box.

Hermione gasped as she caught sight of the two carat diamond, set in platinum. It was very simple, not ostentatious with the only stone being that of the diamond. Her hand covered her mouth as Draco murmured the words, "Hermione Jane Granger, would you do me the honour of becoming my wife?"

Hermione felt tears begin to fall down her cheeks as she nodded her head. "Yes," she whispered as he placed the ring on her finger and then she threw her arms around him in joy.

* * *

**AN:** _Thanks so much for the reviews, guys! I'm working hard on chapter 20, so I should have that posted on time next week!_

_imcck - He does have is work cut out for him. I actually had no idea that I was going to end the chapter like this! Thanks!_

_Miss November June - You're welcome! I sent you back with what I normally write (crime drama), but thanks for the compliment! There's a little bit of drama and then it ends with a surprise! I hadn't planned on him proposing yet, but my muse had different ideas!_

_ReaderforLife - Thanks!_

_slytherinequeen23 - I think I may have answered that question in this chapter, but if not, she was scared to admit her feelings and really thought that he would leave her. Basically, she wasn't thinking properly! I loved Blaise manipulating Draco, it was my fav part of the chapter! Thanks!_

_Bella1992 - I love Blaise. He's awesome! Was this enough to show her that he loves her? (:p) Thanks!_

_LosingTrack - Thanks!_

_jocat - No worries! The way it was written, I can see how you thought that...but I never make anything that easy! I'm the queen of the twist! No more Blaise for a while, but plenty of Neville! Thanks!_

_Aphina - Only 3 times isn't bad! Some of C's I have to read 3 or 4 times before I can beta! :D_

_woaivampireboys - Thanks! What spelling error (I'll go back and correct them), but it's alright. It's normal here this time of year for us to get pretty powerful, so I'm used to it!_

_tiggeroxs - Wow. All in one day! I'm flattered! Thanks!_

_sarenelsoria - Thanks for both of your reviews! And since I don't remember if I responded back to the 2nd, the quote: "If you prick us, do we not bleed..." comes from The Merchant of Venice. Man, Shakespeare was way ahead of his time!_

_Kat.1600 - Thanks!_


	20. Moving Forward

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**_Here's the next chappie!! Thanks to all who reviewed. As always, please R&R. My muse loves the attention._

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**Chapter 20. Moving Forward**

When Hermione returned to her quarters that night, she was still amazed at how romantic Draco had been. When she had seen him in the Room of Requirement, she had thought the worst. Instead, he had surprised her by proposing. As per an unspoken agreement, after she had untangled herself from his arms, they had not spoken of anything of consequence; instead they had talked of trivial things, favourite colours and whatnot.

She looked down at her ring, impressed by its simple elegance, before coming to a decision. This was not something that you wrote your best friend about; she needed to talk to Ginny face to face. So, she decided to go to Minerva and see if she could Floo to the Burrow the following day.

When she got to the Headmistress' office, she walked in with a smile on her face. "Hi Minerva," she greeted the older woman.

Minerva looked up from her desk, startled to see the happy expression on Hermione's face. "Good evening, Mia," she responded. "I take it you are feeling better?"

Hermione nodded. "Yeah."

Minerva looked her over and gasped when she saw the ring. "You finally talked to Draco," she said matter-of-factly.

"Yeah," Hermione said with a grin. "I was so bloody convinced that he had found a way to break it off, when really he was just overwhelmed. That's actually what brings me here. I want to go to the Burrow and tell Ginny and Molly in person. Can I use your Floo?"

"Tonight?" Minerva asked, glancing at the clock.

Hermione shook her head. "No, tomorrow."

Minerva nodded her agreement. "As long as you are back for rounds," she said.

"I will be," Hermione assured her.

* * *

The following morning, at breakfast, she told Draco of her plans. "Do you want me to come?" he asked.

Hermione just shook her head. "Only if you want. I'm sure that we'll be talking about girly things, so I understand if you don't want to come."

Draco thought for a moment before making his decision. "I want to come with you," he said with a smile.

Hermione grinned back at him. "All right. I plan on leaving after breakfast and Minerva wants us back to do rounds tonight. Meet me at her office after you get ready."

Draco nodded his agreement.

Thirty minutes later, they were both stepping out of the fireplace, wiping ash off of themselves. "Aunt Mia!" two voices yelled. Hermione looked down at the two children who had attached themselves to her legs. "Did you come to play?" Lily asked.

Hermione smiled. "No, I came to talk to your Mum and Grandma." She cast a sly look at Draco before kneeling down and whispering, "If you ask nicely, maybe Draco will play with you."

Lily nodded, her pig tails bouncing and turned to Draco. "Will you play with me?" she asked, her eyes pleading.

Draco looked at the little girl, feeling his resolve crumbling at her puppy dog eyes. Finally, he crouched down next to her. "Of course, but can I say hello to your family first?"

Lily nodded again while Draco stood back up. "That was blackmail," he muttered to Hermione, who just giggled.

Lily ran out of the room yelling, "Mum! Aunt Mia's here and Draco said he would play with me!"

Jamie looked at the two adults before saying, "Will you play with me, too?"

Draco smiled, feeling more comfortable with the boy. "Of course! We'll all do something together," he assured the child.

Jamie smiled a gap toothed grin before running after his sister. Hermione softly put her hand on his arm, while giving him an appreciative smile. "You handled that well."

Draco just nodded as he followed her out of the room. They found both Ginny and Molly in the kitchen looking to be in a heated argument. Ginny broke off whatever she was going to say when she saw Hermione. "Mia!" she squealed, running to give her a hug.

Hermione returned the hug. "Sorry to just drop in on you," she said pleasantly, trying to diffuse the tension in the room.

"That's okay, dear," Molly responded with a forced smiled and a clear look of 'This isn't finished' towards her daughter. "What brings you by?"

Hermione glanced at both women before sticking out her hand to show them the ring. Ginny gasped. "Oh Merlin, that's gorgeous!" she exclaimed before turning to Draco who was standing in the background looking sheepish.

He smiled at Ginny before muttering, "Thanks for the advice. It obviously worked."

Ginny grinned as Hermione looked on in bafflement. "What are you talking about?" she asked in a low tone.

"Er…" Draco began, not wanting to upset her.

Ginny jumped to his rescue. "He Owled me Tuesday saying that you wouldn't talk to him, so I suggested that he get you to the Room of Requirement, so that you would listen," she said calmly.

"Oh," Hermione said, the light going on in her head. "That's why you didn't send me a Howler for ignoring your Owls."

"Yeah," Ginny admitted.

"So, we can start planning your wedding now," Molly said excitedly. She looked from Hermione to Draco before asking, "What kind of ceremony do you want?"

Draco held up his hands. "It's up to Mia."

Hermione nodded. "All right. Nothing too fancy or big. I really just want my family and friends there."

As Hermione got a dreamy look on her face, Draco decided to make a hasty exit to go play with Jamie and Lily.

* * *

After Draco escaped from the kitchen, he went to find the twins. He found them in the living room, playing with some toys. Lilly looked as he walked in and cried, "Draco! Can we play tea party?"

Draco looked confused for a moment and then answered her, "We can if your brother wants to, otherwise we need to play something together."

Jamie smiled at him. "No tea party," he stated firmly. "Let's play Order and the Death Eaters!"

Draco's heart jumped before he shook his head. "I don't think that's appropriate," he started, but stopped when Jamie's face fell. "All right, but only if your sister agrees."

Lily looked pensive before nodding her agreement. "Okay. But you're the Death Eater!"

Draco nodded, reflexively cringing at her innocent words. "So what are the rules," he asked.

"You hide, we find you!" Jamie yelled enthusiastically.

"Okay. So cover your eyes," Draco said as he turned to walk out of the room.

"No magic!" the twins cried in unison as they covered their eyes.

Draco smiled as he began to look for a place to hide, where it wouldn't be difficult for the twins to find him.

* * *

Meanwhile, in the kitchen, Molly, Ginny and Hermione were sitting at the table, with a quill and parchment in front of them.

"So, when you do want to get married?" Molly asked.

Hermione thought for a moment. "Well, the Ministry gave us until September the first to get married, since we both teach. What about August the twenty-third?"

Ginny looked at Hermione aghast. "What about a honeymoon?"

Hermione shrugged. "Ginny," she began, "I don't know about that."

Ginny understood her reservations and though carefully before speaking softly, "Mia. I know that you are worried about flashbacks, but even if you don't become sexually involved with him at that time, it's still a nice chance for a holiday." Hermione looked thoughtful before nodding her agreement. Ginny smiled and continued, "Okay, so we'll have the ceremony the first Saturday in August. I believe that is the second."

"With that settled, what kind of ceremony do you want, dear?" Molly asked. "Wizard or Muggle, or even a combination of both."

Hermione pursed her lips. "If my parents were still alive, I'd say a combination, but I'm not really close to my remaining family, so I guess a purely Wizard ceremony would be best. What exactly does that entail?" she asked hesitantly.

Ginny nodded her head. "Well, there are different types of bonding ceremonies, from the simple to the more formal, but I actually think that you should talk to Draco about it. It's important that you be on the same page as him when it comes to same actual ceremony." At Hermione's nod, she continued, "Where would you like to have the ceremony?"

"Either here or at Hogwarts," Hermione replied instantaneously.

Molly nodded. "Depending on the type of ceremony, either place will be perfect.

"Are there restrictions on colours? What do wizard wedding robes look like?" Hermione asked, thinking back to the wedding dress that she had always pictured herself wearing.

"Most of the formal bonding ceremonies just require the wedding party to be dressed in earth tones," Molly assured her. "The wedding robes just vary depending on the witch or wizard's personal style." Molly thought for moment before rising. "I think that I still have some books on wizard weddings from when Arthur and I got married, so let me see if I can find them," she said as she left the room.

Hermione nodded as she turned to Ginny. "What were you two quarrelling about?" she asked bluntly.

Ginny blushed whilst biting her lip. "Er…I just found out that I'm pregnant."

Hermione's eyes opened wide. "What! How far along are you?"

Ginny bit her lip again. "About a month. Needless to say, Mum's not exactly thrilled about it." She turned and looked out the window. "She said that she understood why I slept with Harry, life and death situation, but she's disappointed that I've slept with Lee so soon," she said softly, clearly upset about Molly's reaction.

Hermione sighed softly. "Ginny? Are you happy about being pregnant?"

Ginny looked at her friend. "Unbelievably. You know, I wasn't sure when I found out that I had to marry Lee. I mean, he was one of the twin's friends. But, he…he's great. He's wonderful with the twins; he doesn't treat my like Fred and George's little sister. He treats me like a woman." Ginny got a dreamy look in her eyes. "There's this indescribable connection that I have with him, so I'm happy that we took the relationship to the next level."

Hermione watched as a flush crept up the younger girl's cheeks. "You're happy."

Ginny nodded. "Yeah. I mean, with Harry—it was our first time and we only had sex once, right before the final battle." She looked at Hermione shyly. "I know, I've never talked with you about this, you never seemed receptive to it, but with Lee, the sex is amazing. He has taken me to highs that I never expected to feel."

Hermione blushed at the openness of the conversation. She was intrigued, but felt a little left out because she had nothing to compare the experience to. "I...I'm happy for you. Have you told Lee yet?"

Ginny shook her head. "No, I just confirmed it yesterday and he is away on a business trip and won't be back until Wednesday." She say Hermione's look of confusion. "He's a commentator for Quidditch games. He's following the Cannons to their game against Hungary."

Hermione smiled. "He's a good commentator. I'm glad he has a job that he likes." She reached across the table and patted Ginny's hand. "Just explain your feelings to Molly and I think she'll understand."

Ginny nodded as Molly walked back into the room, carrying a couple of books. "Here you go, Mia. I have some books on handfasting and some more formal ceremonies. Why don't you read these and then discuss your options with Draco?" Molly's eyes twinkled. "Who, by the way, is currently playing Order and the Death Eater with the twins."

Ginny hastily explained, "It's basically hide and seek. The children just overheard their uncles talking about the War and they refuse to call it by any other name."

Molly shook her head. "They've 'captured' him a couple of times already; they seem to be having fun. Why don't we get back to planning?"

The two women nodded and together began to fill the parchment with notes.

* * *

A few hours passed before Hermione sought out Draco to see if he was ready to leave. She hunted the house over for him until finding him in the twins' bedroom, reading them a story; both children snuggled, sleeping, into his sides. Hermione smiled at the vision that was evoked in her head of him doing the same thing with their children and that made her stop cold, a blank expression on her face.

Draco looked up at her before carefully extracting himself from their grips. "You okay, Mia?"

Hermione shook her head to clear the shock out of her head. "I'm fine. Are you ready to go?"

"Yeah, these two really wore me out," he said with a smile.

Hermione giggled again as they walked down the stairs to the Floo to return to Hogwarts.

* * *

**AN:** _Okay guys! I'm so sorry for the wait! Real life sucks. But anywho…Thanks to all who read and reviewed (even those who didn't review!)_

_Bella1992 - Thanks! I'm glad I surprised you!_

_woaivampireboys - Lol. No worries! It's weird for me to write in UK English, but that's why I have 2 fab UK betas! Thanks!_

_ReaderforLife - Thanks!_

_LosingTrack - Thanks! Here you go!_

_wicked333 - I'm trying, but real life keeps getting in the way!_

_Aphina - I loved it because it was fluff. I still have some emotional things in store, but it's quite fluffy for a couple of chapters!_

_spikeecat - Thanks...Here you go!_

_imcck - It will continue for a bit, but they still have some trials in store for them! Thanks!_

_Kat.1600 - I must admit when I was looking at rings from Tiffany's when I was describing the ring! (I want a little blue box!) Thanks!_

_slytherinqueen23 - I'm so glad that they talked and I like seeing the sneaky side of Draco! I may have to use it more! Thanks!_

**_Okay. Time for a shamelss plug here. If you read my CSI: NY fanfiction, please go to the forums and find the CSI: NY FanFiction Awards and vote for me! I'm nominated in several catagories for several different stories! Thanks!_**


	21. Valentine's Day

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**_Here's the next chappie!! Thanks to all who reviewed. As always, please R&R. My muse loves the attention._

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**Chapter 21. Valentine's Day**

The next month passed quickly for Hermione. With the increased lesson plans and the daily owls to Ginny, she had very little free time. The only time she got to spend with Draco was the weekend. So on Valentine's Day, Hermione was very surprised—since she didn't realize what day it was—by a knock on her door before the sun rose.

Wiping her eyes sleepily, she shrugged on her robe and answered the door. "Draco?" she asked in surprise when she saw him standing there.

Draco smiled. "Happy Valentine's Day, Mia."

Hermione's eyes opened wide. "Bollocks! Is that today?" she exclaimed.

Draco laughed. "Yes," he said, pulling a bouquet of flowers from behind his back.

Hermione shook her head as she accepted the red and yellow roses from him and ushered him inside. "They're beautiful," she said before conjuring a vase for them. "Give me a moment to get dressed."

Draco nodded as she left the room. He thought back to the previous month that they had spent getting to know one another. He had confided to her about the fears he'd had while growing up and she, in turn, had let him in to see how much the rapes had affected her. She had told him about her attempted suicide and he had tried his hardest to be understanding.

He did notice that she was no longer flinching when he would touch her; a sign which greeted him with joy, but he was still frustrated since every time he tried to kiss her, she pulled away. _Tonight,_ he thought, _tonight, maybe we can go to the next level._

Hermione hummed to herself as she got dressed. She, too, thought back to the previous month and to how accepting and patient Draco had been.

He had talked to her openly about how even though he'd had a reputation as a "sex god" in school, the only person he'd slept with was Pansy. That had both surprised and pleased her. That information had made her more comfortable around him and he was starting to show her that even though he looked like his father, he was nothing like him.

She had begun to relax more in his presence, but still flinched when he tried to kiss her. That was frustrating her because she wanted to take things to the next level. _Tonight,_ she thought, _I'm going to try tonight._

After she was finished dressing, she grabbed a wrapped gift that she had purchased for Draco and walked back out into the living area. "Sorry. I've been so busy that I didn't realize what day it was," she said as she handed him the gift. "Happy Valentine's Day."

Draco looked at the wrapped box, before glancing at her. "You didn't have to," he said.

Hermione laughed. "Yes, I did. Go ahead and open it!"

Draco nodded and quickly pulled off the red bow and tore at the white paper. Once he opened the box, he looked inside in confusion, before what the gift was finally penetrated his mind. "Is this…" he trailed off.

Hermione nodded. "Yes. It's an original manuscript of the potions text written by Godric Gryffindor and Salazar Slytherin. According to my contact, this was the first potions text used to teach when Hogwarts was established," she said grinning ear to ear.

Draco looked stunned as he sat in the chair. "I don't know what to say….Thank you."

"You're welcome."

Draco shook his head to clear it and then returned her smile. "You'll get your gift tonight. Meet me in the Room of Requirement after dinner." He glanced down at his watch. "Bollocks. It's time for breakfast."

Hermione sighed as she rose from her chair. "Another day of cramming lessons into the students heads. I do have a test scheduled, so that will make it interesting." She turned and looked at him. "How are your classes going?"

Draco shrugged as he opened the door for her. "Were we this insolent when we were in school?"

Hermione laughed. "Oh, I know that you were. Me, not so much."

Draco laughed as they made their way to the Great Hall.

* * *

That evening, after dinner, Hermione went back to her quarters to change. _I wonder what Draco has planned?_ she thought as she dressed carefully. She decided on a green skirt and matching blouse, smirking as she consciously dressed in his house colours. Carefully, she pulled her hair back into a low pony tail, leaving a few strands free to frame her face.

When she got to the Room of Requirement, she walked to the half open door and gasped at the room. It was decorated by a multitude of candles, giving it a soft light. In the centre of the room, a lone table sat with a vase with a single red rose in it.

Draco rose upon seeing her and with a wave of his wand, shut the door behind her. "Mia, you look beautiful," he said as he held the chair out for her to sit down.

"Thank you," she replied. "You look handsome as well." Her eyes took in the black slacks and black silk shirt he was wearing, which highlighted his aristocratic looks.

Draco just nodded at the compliment and lifted the silver lid covering her plate. "I thought we could have dessert," he said as he revealed the chocolate mouse and strawberries.

Hermione sighed in delight. Chocolate was her weakness. "It looks wonderful," she said as she daintily scooped a small bite onto her spoon, even though she wanted to plunge into the dessert.

Draco watched as an expression of pure bliss crossed her face; he felt his body's inevitable response and fought back a groan of desire. Tearing his eyes away from her, he focused on his own treat so that he could get himself back under control. Quickly, he finished his dessert as he watched her savour hers to the final drop.

Sighing in satisfaction, Hermione laid down the spoon when she was finished. "Draco, that was fabulous," she uttered in pleasure. "Chocolate is my weakness."

Draco smiled. "I love it, too. Mainly because my parents didn't let me have sweets very often." He thought back to his childhood. "Actually, the first time I had chocolate was on the train ride to Hogwarts. I…I overindulged and ended up with a stomach ache."

Hermione laughed. "My parents rarely let me eat it. They were both dentists and always told me that by eating a lot of chocolate my teeth would rot. But on special occasions, I could eat some, as long as I cleaned my teeth afterwards." She looked at him, smiling as she drank a sip of wine. "Even now, I'm fanatical about my teeth being clean."

"Amazing about how little things from our childhood affect us even to this day, huh?" Draco said as he bent over to retrieve a package from underneath the table. "Happy Valentine's Day, Mia."

Hermione accepted the package with a smile. Unlike his impatience that morning, she opened the package carefully, savouring the anticipation. When she finally got it unwrapped, she gasped in surprise. "Oh, Draco. They're gorgeous," she breathed whilst staring at the sapphire earrings that matched the necklace he'd given her at Christmas.

Draco smiled. "I thought you deserved the matching earrings," he said softly, and then with a wave of his wand, the soft strains of a violin began to play. "May I have this dance?"

Hermione nodded with a wry grin. "Yes, but it's only fair to warn you, I'm not a good dancer," she said accepting his hand.

"Don't worry about it, neither am I," Draco admitted. He pulled Hermione into his arms and slowly they began swaying to the music. He relished the feel of her moving with him.

Hermione put her arms around Draco's neck and felt his arms encircle her waist; he held onto her lightly. She was startled to not feel any trepidation at being held by him; she'd expected to feel some sort of anxiety, to have flashbacks to her captivity. As she thought it over, she realized that she wasn't having those feelings because being held by Draco was making her feel safe. Smiling, she laid her head against his chest and lost herself into the feeling.

Draco looked down at Hermione's head as it settled on his chest. He felt his chest tighten as emotions threatened to overwhelm him. Involuntarily, he tightened his hold on her, not willing to let her go.

They swayed with the music for what felt like an eternity, both lost in the music. Finally, Hermione pulled away from him slightly, her feet beginning to hurt. "Draco?" she queried. "Can we go sit down for a while? My feet are beginning to hurt."

"Sure," Draco replied as he led her to the love seat that had replaced the table. They settled down onto the cushions and Draco quickly Acciod their glasses and the bottle of wine; quickly he topped off the glasses. "A toast," he said. "To putting the past behind us."

Hermione smiled as she clinked her glass against his. "To moving forward," she agreed as she took a sip of the wine. She lowered the glass and looked into Draco's eyes, feeling herself falling into the silver orbs. Before she could realize what was going to happen, his lips were upon hers.

Draco was drawn into her honey coloured eyes and knew that he could not hold himself completely back, so he leaned forward and brushed her lips lightly, so not to frighten her.

Hermione felt an electric shock run through her body and melted into Draco's touch. She felt his tongue stroking her lips lightly and she granted him entrance. Draco groaned as he deepened the kiss. His hands cupped her face, his thumbs stroked her cheeks.

Hermione's arms moved around him and ran her fingers up and down his back. She felt him shiver in desire at her touch and felt a sense of jubilation at the power of her touch on him.

Draco felt her caressing him and of their own accord his hands responded. He ran them lightly down her arms, feeling her shudder in desire. Gasping for breath, he broke the kiss and moved his lips down to jaw, trailing kisses along her heated skin. He hands skimmed up her body and slightly caressed the underside of her breasts.

Hermione froze at his touch, images of Lucius overlaying themselves over Draco as her eyes snapped open. Her skin began to crawl as she jerked away from him, tears filling her eyes.

Draco looked at him, confusion darkening his eyes until he realized what had happened. Mentally, he drew himself back, trying to get his raging hormones under control as his body protested as the lack of touch.

"I'm so sorry," Hermione sobbed as she turned away from him.

Draco walked over to her and gently placed his hand on her arm. "Don't worry about it," he replied, trying to keep calm. "I think I can understand," he said, drawing his recollections of the books he'd read.

Hermione felt horrible about jerking away from Draco, who was still being very patient with her. Even as he was trying to soothe her, she was berating herself for her actions. _Why did you have to ruin it?_ she thought.

Draco was still talking softly talking to her when he noticed that she wasn't paying attention. "Mia? Are you all right?" he asked worriedly.

Hermione looked into his concerned eyes and fought back her tears. "I'm sorry," she choked out as she pulled away from him and ran out of the room.

Draco stared at her retreating back, frustrated, confused and angry. Logically, he knew that something like this was bound to happen as their relationship became for intimate, but his body was protesting, aching with need. He began to clean up, knowing that both of them needed time to cool down before trying to talk. Finally, once everything was clean, he made his way back to his quarters, to change before seeking her out.

When Hermione got back to her quarters, she threw herself onto the bed, sobbing. _Why? Why did I react like that? Merlin, we were only snogging,_ she though morosely. After about fifteen minutes, she'd finally calmed down enough to replay the incident in her mind. As she recalled her feelings, she blushed as she remembered the rush of desire than have filled her. _I haven't felt like this since Ron,_ she thought. _But Ron and I never did do more than kiss and some light petting. This…this is so much more._

Sitting up on the bed, she wiped her face whilst shaking her head. With the memories, came the recollection of how caring Draco had been and she knew that she'd overreacted. _Bloody hell! I owe him an apology for running off like that._ Making her decision, she got out of the bed and went to take a shower before deciding to find him to apologise.

* * *

**AN: **_Okay guys! Here's the next chapter! I'm working on trying to get back to updating weekly, but work has been stressful and my muse unwilling to write._

_ReaderforLife - Thanks! I'm glad you liked it!_

_LosingTrack - I liked writing that scene. I can just see him being good with kids. :D Thanks!_

_wicked333 - Thanks! I'm glad that you like it! My goal is to make sure that everyone is entertained! _

_Bella1992 - Thanks! A lot of people liked that!_

_woaivampireboys - I'd almost forgotten it to! Can you believe that Ginny and Lee's wedding is the chapter after this? _

_TheVampire89 - Thanks!_

_hannah xx - I couldn't believe when I wrote that in! It seemed to fit, though. She's always been a little more free in that respect than Hermione. Thanks!_

**_Okay. I'm plugging away here! If you read my CSI: NY stories, please go to the CSI: NY forum and vote for me! I'm nominated in many catagories!_**


	22. Apologies and Invitations

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**_Here's the next chappie!! Thanks to all who reviewed. As always, please R&R. My muse loves the attention._

**AN #2:** _First of all, I'd like to apologise for my lack of updating. I was busy with a spring project (which I finally finished) and then my muse and I had some...um...creative differences. When I finally soothed her ruffled scales (she is a dragon, of course) it was so hard to write this chapter! But on the plus side, she seems to be back in a good mood and I have 23 and 24 completed and am just waiting for my beta to get them back to me! This one is unbeta'd, so any mistakes are my own (although if you see anything glaringly wrong, please let me know and I'll fix it!). Also, there is an explicit version of this chapter at adultfanfiction (dot) net (all focused on Draco)._

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**Chapter 22. Apologies and Invitations**

When Draco arrived at his quarters, he was surprised to see Hermione standing at his door. "Mia?" he called out to her.

Hermione spun around at the sound of his voice. She'd been standing in front of his door for five minutes trying to get the courage to knock. "Um…hi," she began slowly as he walked up to her, muttering the password to get into his room.

Draco looked at her as he motioned for her to precede him inside. "What are you doing here?" he asked neutrally.

Hermione glanced down at her hands clasped in front of her nervously. "I…uh…I wanted to apologize to you for running out," she said honestly. "I started to have a flashback and kind of freaked out."

Draco nodded and drew her into his arms. "I thought that, but why did you run?"

Hermione sighed as his hands rubbed up and down her back soothingly. "I don't know," she muttered into his chest before drawing away slightly to look him in the eyes. "I think that it may be because I tried to bury those memories."

Draco nodded his understanding before guiding her towards the sofa to sit down. "Have you considered moving those memories into a pensieve?" he asked quietly.

Hermione shrugged. "I'd thought about it, but it seems like the cowards way out," she finally admitted.

Draco smirked. "Ever the Gryffindor," he teased. "It's not cowardly to want to remove those memories, Mia. You're a witch, for Merlin's sake!"

"I know, but I think I need to face this. I mean, this is part of moving on and it's made me, me. If I remove that, then would I still be me?" she responded philosophically.

Draco thought for a bit, surprised that her reasoning matched what he'd thought about when trying to decide to remove the memories from the war. Finally he nodded before quoting softly, "If you don't learn from the past, you are doomed to repeat it."

Hermione nodded. "Exactly. Whether I like it or not, those events changed me and I don't want to forget. But, the question is where do we go from here?"

Draco sighed. "We take this one day at a time," he replied. "I'll be honest with you, Mia. I want to move our relationship forward, but I don't want to push you. Merlin knows that I desire you, but unless you're willing to move forward, I'm not going to take that step," he said as he body protested. "I'm not that boy who will just take what he wants any longer."

Hermione smiled. "Thank you. I want to as well, but it's just frustrating to not be able to do that right now." She leaned into his as she said this and kissed him lightly.

Draco groaned as the banked embers of his desire flared back to life at the soft kiss.

Hermione moaned as well as his lips caressed her, desire pooling in her lower body again, the unfamiliar ache causing her to squeeze her legs together. Finally, the pair broke apart, both gasping for air. "Oh Merlin," Hermione sighed.

Draco smirked, trying not to focus on his desire. "Mia, I think you should go before I break my promise," he said.

Hermione blushed as she looked down and saw the evidence of his desire straining against the cloth of his slacks. She smiled softly. "All right, but before I go, I wanted to ask you if you would accompany me to Ginny's wedding."

Draco nodded absently. "Of course, if she is okay with that."

"Thank you," she said as she kissed him one last time, pouring all of her pent up passion into the kiss. When she finally broke away, both were panting. "Good night."

"Good night," Draco returned, watching her walk out of the room. _Merlin, she is going to be the death of me,_ he thought.

* * *

Over the next month, Hermione and Draco let their relationship simmer. Draco didn't push her any further, although his body was protesting. Hermione discovered that as long as she didn't think about the past, she was having fewer flashbacks and dreams. So when Easter break came up, Hermione told him that she was going to the Burrow a few days early to try and keep the peace between Ginny and Molly, who had still not forgiven her for getting pregnant.

When Hermione arrived, Molly and Ginny were fighting.

"Mum! How many times can I tell you that I didn't mean to get pregnant?" Ginny yelled as Hermione stepped out of the Floo.

"You should have been more careful!" Molly retorted.

Hermione shook her head before stepping between the two women. "Both of you stop it!" she said sternly. "What's done is done and neither of you can change the past.

Both women looked at her before nodding their agreement. Hermione looked at both before continuing, "Why don't I take my bags upstairs? Ginny, do you want to help me with that?" Ginny nodded her agreement before following Hermione upstairs.

"So, what was that all about?" Hermione asked.

Ginny sighed. "Mum neglected to tell the dressmaker that I was pregnant and my wedding robes are too small," she said, her upset clearly showing.

"Did you Owl the seamstress and see if she could alter it?"

Ginny nodded. "She said that because there are so many weddings planned that there is no way she can see me," Ginny muttered as tears filled up her eyes.

Hermione reached over and patted her on the arm. "What about another seamstress?"

Ginny sniffed. "I don't know. Maybe Madam Malkin can see me."

Hermione nodded firmly and waived her wand to finish unpacking quickly. "All right. Let's go," she said firmly.

Thirty minutes later, they were striding down Diagon Alley; Ginny's wedding robes in tow. The girls made their way into Madam Malkin's shop, both shocked by the sheer number of witches and wizards in the small space. "Wow," Ginny muttered softly. "I don't think I've ever seen this many people here."

Hermione nodded as a frazzled sales girl walked up to them. "Welcome to Madame Malkin's. Are you ladies just browsing today?"

Hermione looked at the girl, who looked no older than herself. "Actually, we're here to see if Madame Malkin can alter some wedding robes by Saturday," she said politely.

The girl shook her head. "I'm sorry, but alterations take a fortnight without an appointment."

Ginny looked downtrodden at the girl's response, but Hermione pressed on. "Please, we need help. Can you at least ask Madame Malkin if she can help?"

The girl got an exasperated look on her face. "Look," she said waspishly, "no exceptions. There's nothing that I can do."

Hermione looked at Ginny, whose eyes were welling up with tears and decided to bite the bullet. "Please, can you tell her that it's for Ginny Weasley and Hermione Granger?"

The girl's eyes grew round at their names and she began to stammer. "Um…wait one moment and I'll check," she muttered before scurrying to a back room. Within moments she was back. "Please follow me," she said with a tinge of awe in her voice.

As they were following her, Ginny looked at Hermione in amazement. "Wow, Mia. I can't believe that you did that."

Hermione grinned. "I hate having to use my name, but there are some benefits to being Harry Potter's best friend."

When they got back to the room, Madame Malkin was waiting for them. "Ms. Granger and Ms. Weasley. How nice to see you. Jennifer said that you needed some robes altered," she stated pleasantly.

Ginny nodded. "Yes, ma'am. It's my wedding robes and unfortunately they are a bit too small," Ginny replied.

Madame Malkin nodded. "Of course. Why don't you change behind that screen and I'll see what I can do." Once Ginny was changing she turned to Hermione. "Ms. Granger, have you started to look for your wedding robes yet?"

Hermione shook her head. "Not really. I'm not getting married until August, so I haven't put much thought into it."

"Well you should!" Madame Malkin gushed. "You want to look beautiful on your wedding day, do you not?" She turned and grabbed some books from a shelf. "Here, look at these and see if anything catches your eye. I will tell you that Muggle wedding attire is all the rage right now, so there is a lot of variety."

Hermione nodded and sat in a seat while Madame Malkin began to look over Ginny. She flipped through the pages, seeing both moving wizarding photos of robes and still Muggle ones of wedding dresses. She was so absorbed in the books that she didn't notice that Ginny was finished until the younger girl sat next to her. Hermione turned the page and gasped when she saw the Muggle dress.

"Wow," Ginny said. "That is gorgeous!"

Hermione nodded as she stared at the dress. It was a simple A-line dress with a fitted square neck bodice. The sleeves were three-quarters length, longer in the back than in the front. It was a soft ivory in colour with an overlay of lace embroidered with pearls. "I don't believe it," Hermione said in shock. "When I was a little girl, this is the wedding dress that I dreamed of."

Ginny looked at her in shock. "Then that settles it. You are supposed to have this dress," she said firmly.

Still in shock, Hermione shook her head. Then she looked up at Ginny, trying to get her wits about her. "Are you ready to go? Was Madam Malkin able to help?"

The younger girl smiled. "Yes and she altered the robes while you were looking at the catalogues. She even charmed the robes so that you can't tell that I'm pregnant," Ginny gushed excitedly.

Hermione smiled. "Good. Now, let's get back to the Burrow so that we can finish preparations." She turned to Madam Malkin, "Do you have a catalogue that I can take with me and discuss with my fiancé?

Madame Malkin nodded and gestured to the books in Hermione's hands. "Take those, my dear. I have plenty more."

"Thank you," Hermione said as she and Ginny rose to leave.

When they arrived at the Burrow, Molly was waiting on them expectantly. "Well," she said as soon as they stepped out of the fireplace.

Ginny grinned triumphantly. "Madame Malkin altered them," she said. "And she taught me a charm so that no one will know that I am pregnant."

Molly sighed in relief. "Thank Merlin," she uttered. "Now girl, we have a lot to do in very little time, so let's get to work," she said and like a general began to outline the plan to finish the preparations.

**AN:** _Okay. So, I will try to post 23 as soon as my beta gets it back to me and then hopefully, I'll be back on schedule!_

_jessirose85 - Thanks! He won't be angry, but kinda hurt. Don't worry...they will work it out! Thanks!!_

_Bella1992 - Thanks and I think you have it nailed. She is getting better, but slowly and she'll still be prone to flashbacks and nightmares for a while now. Sorry for the wait!_

_woaivampireboys - Thanks!!_

_LosingTrack - Thanks!!_

_ReaderforLife - Thanks!!_

_Ember Riddle - Thanks so much and welcome!_

_BlueSunsetWaters - Welcome to my demeted world and to fanfiction! (It becomes a quick addiction). Thanks for reviewing and I'm glad you are caught up! I should be back to updating every week or so now. _

_Kat.1600 - Thank you! It was fun to write._

_Azrulai - Welcome and thanks!_

_Aphina - Yeah for getting caught up...but then I got behind. But hopefully Lexi is sticking around for a bit!_

_wicked333 - Here ya go! Thanks!_

_InBedWithSoviets - Yeah for a new reviewer! Thanks! I'm glad you like it and your penname totally intrigues me!_

_DracoMalfoy'sChick - Thanks! It wasn't too long for you!_


	23. An Easter Wedding

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**_Here's the next chappie!! Thanks to all who reviewed. As always, please R&R. My muse loves the attention._

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**Chapter 23. An Easter Wedding**

Friday evening, when Draco arrived it was to chaos. The first thing he heard, when stepping out of the fireplace was Molly yelling at the twins.

"Fred! George!" she screeched. "If you are not going to help with the preparations, then leave! I will not have you ruin this day for your sister!"

Draco looked around the room and saw Fred and George hiding behind the sofa, stifling laughter. He was just about to say something when Molly burst into the room. She looked startled to see him standing there.

"Oh, Draco. When did you arrive?"

"Just now, Mrs. Weasley. How are you doing?" he asked her as he moved to block her view of the twins.

"I'm fine dear. Did you see Fred or George in here when you stepped out of the Floo?"

Draco shook his head, making the decision to cover for the twins. "No ma'am, do you want me to look for them?"

Molly shook her head. "That's okay. I'll find them." She turned to leave and muttered under her breath, "And when I do, I might just skin them alive."

After she left, Draco turned to the twins. "Give me one good reason that I just lied to your Mum."

Both Fred and George stared at him in disbelief, and then turned to each other before saying, "You're invited to the bachelor party."

Draco grinned. "Thanks."

"And," George said, "We humbly apologise for turning your hair pink, mate."

"Let us show you to your room," Fred said as he picked up Draco's bags and snuck upstairs.

They were putting his bags in the attic when Draco said, "What did you do to make your Mum so angry?"

The twins sported identical smirks. "Well," Fred began. "First, we turned the wedding cake black…"

"Temporary charm. It'll wear off by tomorrow," George interjected.

"Then, we turned all the bridesmaid dresses hot pink," Fred continued.

"And Ginny's wedding robes florescent orange," George finished.

Draco felt his eyes open wide. "No wonder they want to kill you!"

The twins nodded. "Now, we make our escape," they said as they grabbed Draco's hands and Apparteded away.

Meanwhile in Ginny's room, Hermione and Molly were trying to comfort the girl. "Gin, you know they wouldn't have done something permanent," Hermione pointed out. "They don't want to be on the receiving end of your Bat Bogey Hex."

Molly nodded. "We can set this to rights. Why don't you lay down for a bit while Mia and I sort it out?"

Ginny nodded, wiping her eyes. "All right," she said softly as she lay down upon the bed.

Molly and Hermione left the room, both seething internally at the twin's antics. "Will they ever grow up?" Hermione hissed to Molly so that Ginny would not hear them.

Molly sighed, shaking her head. "I had hoped that their pranking was just a phase. I guess I was wrong," she replied. "Oh, Draco arrived and for tonight he'll be in the attic. I hope he doesn't mind the ghoul."

Hermione smiled. "Good, hopefully we can get his help trying to reverse the twins' prank," she said then looked at the ceiling as the unmistakable sound of an Apparition rang through the Burrow. Curious both she and Molly walked into the attic, unsurprised to see it empty except for Draco's bags lying on the bed.

Molly smiled fondly. "I saw him in the living room covering for the twins, so I guess they decided to leave. Honestly, do they really think that I didn't see them?"

Hermione looked at the older woman in surprise. "You saw them?"

Molly nodded. "Yes, Draco covered for them and against my better judgement, I allowed him to do that in hopes they would stop playing pranks on him."

Hermione felt tears welling up in her eyes. "Molly, you didn't have to do that!" she exclaimed as they made their way to the kitchen.

"No, I didn't, but I wanted to. Now, let's see if we can reverse these charms."

--

The following day dawned bright and early. Hermione got up with the sun, but let Ginny sleep in since she knew that she needed her rest. When she went downstairs, she breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that the cake and robes were back to their original state. Sleepily, she went into the kitchen to see Molly preparing breakfast. "Good morning, Molly," she said softly.

Molly turned around. "Good morning, Mia. I was happy to see that everything was back to normal this morning."

Hermione nodded as Molly set some eggs on the table. "I'm letting Ginny sleep in a bit, since yesterday was exhausting for her."

Molly nodded. "That's a good idea, dear. I think we should go and wake up Draco and the twins so that they will get some sort of punishment for what they did."

Hermione giggled in conspiracy, she had still been awake when they returned, obviously drunk at three a.m. "I'll get Draco up, and let you handle the twins. Do you have a Hangover Potion?"

Molly smiled with a raised eyebrow. "I do, but they are not getting any of it," she replied. "That's part of their punishment for what they did."

Hermione nodded and quickly finished her breakfast. Once she had cleaned up, she made her way to the attic and softly knocked on the door. When there was no response, she walked into the pitch black room and grinned evilly. "Draco?" she said and when there was no response, shook her head. She drew her wand and quickly had the room darkening charm taken off of the windows. The windows faced east and were bright even to her eyes.

Draco groaned as the light hit his eyelids. Groggily, he reached for his wand without opening his eyes, his head pounding. He'd lost track of how many Firewhiskey's he'd had at the party and had no clue to how he'd gotten into bed.

Hermione saw him reaching for his wand, Acciod it quickly and watched as he searched unsuccessfully for it. When he made a move to pull the covers over his head, she quickly charmed them away from him. "Draco," she called in a singsong voice. "Time to get up!"

Draco groaned again. "Just five more minutes, Mum."

She shook her head before walking to the bed and leaving over him to whisper in his ear, "But I'm not your Mum."

Draco groaned again, both the sound of her voice and the drummer that was trapped in his skull. He slowly opened his eyes, squinting in the harsh sunlight. "Mia?" he asked as he pulled her into his arms and closed his eyes.

Hermione grinned as she slipped out of his grasp with a raised eyebrow. "Get up. We've got a lot to do."

Draco opened his eyes again to see her Slytherin worthy smirk and noticed the sun was barely up. "Why are we up so early? The wedding's not until two!"

Hermione just smirked again. "Well, let's see, we spent most of yesterday trying to undo the charms that the twins put on the cake and robes, therefore we are behind. And since you covered for the twins," Draco looked startled, "then you get to help. Did you really think that Molly didn't know that you covered for them? Come on, Draco, she's the one that raised them!"

Draco groaned as he realised how right she was. "Fine, can I at least have a Hangover Potion?"

Hermione shook her head. "No."

"Please, Mia?" Draco pleaded. "I'll do anything that you want."

"Sorry, but this is Molly's rule, not mine. And I'm not going to get on her bad side," Hermione said as she walked out of the room.

Draco sighed as he crawled out from underneath the covers, to get dressed, watching her walk out of the room.

When she got back downstairs, she noticed the twins sitting sulking at the table. She helped Molly finish breakfast for the rest of the house. By the time they were done, Draco had sulked into the room and was sitting at the table, his head in his hands.

Molly grinned when she saw them. "All right, boys. Here's the list of what I need you to do today. First, you need to set up the archway in the garden, and then set up all the chairs. This must be down by noon; that's when the florist is going to be here. After you finish that, I need you to degnome the garden. Then you will need to get dressed. Fred and George, you will be acting as ushers to the guests arriving. Draco, I want you to help Mia in anyway possible after you've finished degnoming the garden and have gotten dressed."

The boys looked at Molly, amazement and resignation on their faces. Quickly, they nodded and as soon as they finished eating, pulled themselves out of the kitchen before she could come up with anything else for them to do.

--

At one o'clock, Hermione had finally banished Draco outside. He was being so helpful, but it was starting to get on her nerves, especially when he suggested that he help her dress. So when Luna arrived, she was like a godsend. She shooed Draco out of the room and the three women smirked at each other.

Ginny gave her a look. "You have him wrapped around your little finger, don't you?"

Hermione just shrugged. "He's just trying to be patient."

Luna looked at them, her eyes mystical. "The sins of the past are visited on the son, but the son shall overcome them. The road ahead is filled with obstacles, choose your battles wisely."

Hermione looked at her, surprised by her words. "Luna?"

Luna shook her head. "Some of those obstacles may be rumpled eared snorts, so you'd better get the proper warding for them."

Hermione and Ginny just shook their heads. Hermione quickly held up her red robes. "I'd better get dressed, then I can help you with your hair and makeup, Ginny."

The younger girl nodded and looked at Luna, who was already dressed in her golden robes, which were the exact colour of her highlights. Luna smiled softly and said, "I'll help you into your robes, Ginny. You have that wonderful maternity glow that means you won't need a lot of cosmetic help."

Ginny blushed, forgetting how observant the former Ravenclaw was. "Thanks," she muttered, her cheeks stained pink.

In only a few minutes, Hermione was back and brandishing her wand with confidence. A confidence that Ginny had given her when she had finally taught Hermione how to tame her wild hair.

"Okay, first order of business, your hair," Hermione said. She muttered a few spells and Ginny's straight hair curled itself into ringlets that were pinned on her head. Luna took over at that point, inserting baby's breathe and red rosebud's into the arrangement. When she was done with that, she carefully applied Ginny's makeup, all very natural except for the red lipstick that she smoothed over her lips. "All done," Luna said once she was finished.

Ginny turned to look in the mirror and gasped at her reflection. She didn't look like she had makeup on at all; she felt gorgeous, a feeling she hadn't had in a long time. "I'm stunned," she said as her eyes teared up. "Thank you."

Hermione smiled, her own eyes watering as she pulled her friend into a hug. "You deserve this and I hope that you are happy with Lee." She sniffed a little. "Now, we have to stop crying or the anti-run charms are going to wear off!" Hermione pulled back and quickly she and Luna charmed the flowers into their hair. Luna had red roses and Hermione had baby's breath in their hair.

Ginny laughed as there was a knock on the door. Molly stuck her head in. "Everyone dressed?" she asked, emotion choking her voice.

Luna, who was standing closest to the door, opened it for her and Molly and Arthur walked in. Arthur looked at his daughter and swallowed hard. "Oh, Ginny, you look so beautiful. I can't believe that you are getting married."

Ginny walked over to her father and gave him a hug. "Me neither, Dad," she whispered, feeling a bit of loss at the fact that Harry was not going to be waiting for her at the end of the aisle.

Arthur drew back and stared his daughter in her eyes. "Are you happy with him?"

Ginny smiled softly. "I am. He may not be Harry, whom I will always love, but he does make me happy," she reassured him.

Arthur nodded, bringing himself back under control and offered his arm to Ginny. "Let's go."

Molly sniffed and quickly went down the stairs to make sure that everyone was seated and ready. Jamie and Lily stood patiently at the door; Molly had gotten them dressed. Lily was wearing a gold dress that matched Luna's whilst Jamie was wearing a handsome set of black dress robes that matched the robes that Fred and George, Lee's attendants, were wearing. Molly looked at Hermione, who nodded that she had everything under control, before taking her seat.

Standing at the end of the aisle were Lee and the twins. Hermione knelt in front of the twins, Lily with her basket of red and white rose petals, Jamie holding the rings (which were securely charmed to the pillow). "Now, I need you two to be very good for your Mum. When I tell you, I want you too to walk down the aisle; Lily, you can scatter the rose petals like we talked about. When you get to where your uncles are, you'll see your Grandma waiting for you. Sit next to them and don't run around," Hermione said firmly. Both the twins' heads nodded in agreement.

Hermione stood and made a nod to Bill, who flicked his wand and the soft strains of Mozart drifted across the garden. As the guests settled into their seats, Hermione gently pushed on the backs of the children, who proceeded to walk solemnly down the aisle. Until they were halfway done, then Lily decided to start skipping whilst throwing the rose petals on the wedding guests instead of the aisle and then decided to begin to pull her brother towards Molly. Jamie began to protest this and firmly planted his feet, causing both children to fall and begin to cry.

Next to the archway, Fred and George were doing nothing to conceal their laughter as Molly shook her head and went to collect her grandchildren.

Ginny just nodded in exasperation at the antics of her children. She leaned over to Hermione and Luna and whispered, "I'm surprised that they made it down half the aisle. They're going to outdo Fred and George with their antics, I swear."

Luna just smiled sweetly as she picked up her bouquet of anthuriums and baby's breath. She calmly stepped down the aisle, it sync with the music, like nothing had happened. Hermione waited patiently for Luna to make it three fourths of the way down the aisle, before grabbing her bouquet of baby's breath and gold carnations and beginning her steps.

When she was halfway down the aisle, she saw Draco turn around and look at her, his eyes showing surprise and desire at the dress she was wearing. She smiled a quick smile at him as she took her place. She turned to look towards Ginny and made a slight nod. Bill flicked his wand again and Chopin began to play. Lee turned towards the back and his jaw dropped at the sight of his fiancée. She looked stunning in the soft ivory of the robes, holding a bouquet of calla lilies.

Hermione watched Molly dab her eyes with a lace handkerchief and felt her eyes drawn to Draco as Ginny came to rest beside her. She stared at him, lost in his eyes throughout the ceremony, barely hearing the words.

She was surprised when Ginny handed her bouquet to her to they could exchange rings. She made herself pay attention to the ceremony as they slipped the simple gold bands onto each other's ring fingers.

Hermione looked at the minister, Professor McGonagall had been unavailable to perform the ceremony for them, he had a smile on his face. "With the power invested to me by the Ministry of Magic, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss your bride."

Lee grinned triumphantly and quickly did that, much to the delight of the younger crowd bending Ginny over backwards to kiss her. Once, they were both standing upright, the minister turned to the crowd. "May I present Mr. and Mrs. Lee Jordan!"

* * *

**AN:** _Okay, so as promised, here is the next chapter, back from my beta! I already have chapter 24 back from her, so that will be posted on Thursday, as normal! I'm working on 25 right now, so I hope that it will be ready by next week._

_ReaderforLife - Thanks!_

_Bella1992 - I'm having fun planning Hermione's wedding. Ginny's was pretty simple, but her's will definitely be more involved (at least on the description side). Thanks!_

_EdwardHarryRonluvemall - Thanks! Right now, it's tentatively 28-29 chapters, but that is subject to change with how much my muse decided to write. It was originally going to be 20 chapters, but I got a little carried away in some parts. :D_

_Kat.1600 - So am I. I don't forsee any major fights for them the rest of the story; they're really getting along well. Thanks!_

_woaivampireboys - Thanks!_

_BlueSunsetWaters - Thanks! I actually have 3 betas that I send this too, so if anyone's busy, I still usually get the chapters back quickly. :D _

_DracoMalfoy'sChick - Thanks!_


	24. Reception

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**_Here's the next chappie!! Thanks to all who reviewed. As always, please R&R. My muse loves the attention. Many thanks to my wonderful betas (princessg, Axellia, and Aphina) without whom this story would suck. Love y'all!_

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**Chapter 24. Reception**

Hermione breathed a sigh of relief when she was able to sit down at the reception. Luckily, Molly had been well prepared and had set out a buffet of different foods. Hermione smiled as Ginny glowed during the reception line, although she was already thinking ahead to the speech that she was going to give.

She was lost in her thoughts, rehearsing her speech in her head when Draco sat down next to her, handing her a glass of champagne. "Mia, you look amazing," he whispered in her ear.

Hermione felt a shiver run down her spine at his husky voice. "Thank you," she returned softly as she accepted the glass from him. "I'm just glad that it's over. It's been such a stressful couple of days."

Draco nodded as she took a sip. "I'm sorry that I covered for the twins," he said feeling a twinge of regret.

Hermione laughed. "Don't worry about it. If it got them to accept you then it was worth it and I'm not mad about it."

Draco laughed as well. "Can you believe that in four months, we'll be the ones standing in a receiving line in the spotlight?"

Hermione shrugged. "I know. I'm not sure what to do. I mean, I saw how much planning went into this wedding and I don't know where we're going to find the time. The N.E.W.T.S. are coming up and I'm going to spend most of my time doing private tutoring for students who want the extra help. Merlin knows that the last two years I've averaged about four hours of sleep a night the last six weeks of the term."

Draco furrowed his brow. "Is it really that bad?"

Hermione smiled. "You know me, always the one to help someone who wants to learn, but it does get stressful. The plus to that is that the majority of my advanced students pass the exams."

Draco shook his head, admiring the way that she strove to make sure her students did well. Shaking his head, he decided to steer the conversation in a different direction, to keep her mind off of the pending exams. "So, what kind of wedding do you want?"

Hermione got a thoughtful look on her face. "Well, when I was little I used to dream of my perfect wedding. It was always a big wedding that the church that my parents attended." Her face fell a bit as she realized that her father would never walk her down the aisle. "Now, I don't know. All of the family that knew I was a witch is dead. Killed by Death Eaters. I'm not close to the rest of my family; Merlin knows that I'm closer to the Weasley's than I am to my family."

"So we'll have a small wedding," Draco reassured her.

"Are you sure?" Hermione asked.

Draco took her hands in his. "I don't care what kind of wedding we have. This day is for you. I want to see the same glow on your face that is on Ginny's right now."

Hermione looked at him, her eyes filling with tears. She was just about to respond when Molly interrupted her. "Mia dear, it's time for the speeches." Hermione nodded and gave Draco's hands a squeeze before standing up. She walked calmly to the table where the cake was placed and tapped her champagne glass lightly, getting everyone's attention.

"I met Ginny when I was twelve and I was still fairly new to the Wizarding world. My best friends were boys and needless to say I was clueless about some things. But with Ginny's guidance, I somehow became more confidant as a witch. I learned from her example, because Merlin knows that one thing that Ginny doesn't lack is confidence." She paused whilst the crowd giggled. "Now, things haven't been easy for any of us involved in the war and Ginny has had to bear more than most, but she bore that with grace. She has a strength that many people don't realize. Maybe that comes from having six older brothers," the crowd laughed again, "but she has endowed upon all those around her the strength to carry on with life after the loss of so many dear to us.

"Now I look at her, on her wedding day, glowing and in love. I know that she will be happy. So my advice to Lee is to always make her happy because if you ever hurt her, once she is done hexing you, I'll hex whatever is left over." She raised her glass in the air. "To Lee and Ginny, may you have a long and prosperous life."

The assembled guests followed suit and with a murmur of "To Lee and Ginny" the guests took a drink.

Hermione moved out of the way and allowed the twins to begin their speech.

"We've known Lee since we started at Hogwarts and were sorted into Gryffindor," Fred began. "And since that day, we've heard many stories of his conquests."

"But now we must ask him not to share stories," George picked up. "Because, really mate, she's our sister!" The crowd laughed. "We know that as her brothers, we are supposed to threaten you that if you do anything to hurt her, you will be joining those that didn't make it out of the war."

"But we believe that we have made it clear what our intentions are, right? Well then, to Ginny and Lee, hope this marriage is full of whatever the ones that last are filled with," Fred interjected.

"So to Ginny and Lee," George continued. "May you have a happy and fruitful marriage."

"Seriously mate, we want more nieces and nephews."

The crowd laughed loudly as they took another drink of the champagne.

Hermione shook her head as the twins set off some magical fireworks, lighting up the afternoon sky. She giggled as she moved towards Draco so the happy couple could cut the cake and serve each other a slice by linking their arms together. As they each took a small bite, one of the twins called out, "Come on! You can do better than that!"

So Ginny turned and stuck her tongue out at them before smearing the remainder of the cake in her hand all over Lee's face. Lee looked shocked for a moment, before he returned the favor. By the time they were done, both had cake all over their faces and in their hair, much to Molly's exasperation.

As the party progressed, Hermione felt herself begin to yawn, so when the happy couple decided to leave, she was grateful. She stood with the rest of the guests at the gate to the garden, waiting for the couple to reappear after changing their clothes. Once they came outside the crowd began to cheer and throw birdseed at them.

She watched in amusement as the birdseed (which the twins had charmed) continued to pelt the couple by itself without any help. She watched as the couple disappeared on the broom decorated with balloons and tin cans.

Once they were gone, Hermione tiredly made her way into the house and into the room that she had been sharing with Ginny. She shook out her hair, cleaned off the makeup and changed out of the dress into a comfortable pair of yoga pants and a cami. Molly had told her earlier in the day that she was making the rest of the family clean, so crawled into the bed and soon was fast asleep.

Draco watched as Hermione tiredly made her way into the house and quickly offered to help the rest of the family clean. Molly gave him an appreciative smile. "Thank you, dear," she said as she began charming the left over food to store itself.

He nodded as he began to charm the dishes clean. Once they were done, Draco walked upstairs to check on Hermione. He knocked softly on the door but when there was no response, he cautiously opened the door.

He walked into the room and looked at her; she was tossing restlessly in the bed, the covers wrapped around her legs. His eyebrows drew together as she whimpered softly, her face changing from one of peace, to one of sheer terror.

Hermione was lost in a nightmare, darkness surrounded her. She held her hands out in front of her, trying to feel around, to orientate herself. She felt someone behind her, stalking her and knew that she only had a few precious seconds to escape. She heard the footsteps coming closer and began to stumble forward. She saw a faint light ahead and put on a burst of speed, only to stumble and fall meters from freedom.

With a cackle of maniacal laughter, Lucius levitated her quickly. "Now, now, my pet. Did you really think that you could escape me?"

Hermione's terror filled eyes stared at him, fear settling into an icy pit in her stomach.

"NO!" she screamed as she awoke in a cold sweat.

Draco quickly gathered her into his arms, trying to soothe her. Her breathes were short as she panted in terror. "Shh. It's all right, Mia. It was just a nightmare," Draco said, trying to calm her.

Hermione flinched as Draco's arms closed around her, but when she heard his voice she relaxed and let him soothe her. She drew in shuddering breaths as she felt her fear ebb away.

Draco ran his hands up and down her back until he felt her stop shuddering. He pulled away and looked at her with concerned eyes. "Do you want to talk about it?" he asked lowly.

Hermione shook her head. "Not really, but thank you."

Draco nodded as he pulled away, despondent at the thought that she still wasn't comfortable enough with him to share her pain. He knew that she was holding back things that she needed to talk about, but he could do nothing to break down her walls. "I'll let you get back to sleep then. You must be exhausted."

Hermione bit her lip as she watched him walk away towards the door. She had seen the flash of hurt in his eyes and she wanted him to know that she did trust him; she just wasn't comfortable sharing her nightmares with him. Just as he reached the door, she made her decision. "Draco?" she called out softly and when she turned around he quickly continued, "Would you stay with me?"

Draco looked at her in shock, before he turned back towards the bed. As he stood by the side, he looked deep into her chocolate eyes. "Are you sure?" At her nervous nod, he quickly stripped down to a T-shirt and his slacks and climbed into the bed with her. He gathered her into his arms, inhaling the slight vanilla scent that he'd begun to associate with her. _This is going to be a long night,_ he thought.

Hermione sighed as his arms held her in comfort and feeling safe once again as she drifted off to sleep.

* * *

**AN:** _As promised, here is the chapter. And…I already have 25 back from my beta, so I'll be posting that as normal next Thursday (if I don't write anymore) or sooner if I can get 26 written._

_Azrulai - I love calla lilies, they are so beautiful, but my fav flowers are the yellow rose and the bluebonnet (I am from Texas!). Thanks and here's the promised update!_

_woaivampireboys - Thanks!_

_Bella1992 - I loved writing that part with the twins because I could so see them doing that. I had a little more trouble with them here, but I think it works. Thanks!_

_jocat - No worries! Real life sucks, so I understand. It's beginning to develope more now, so I can't wait for them to get married. Thanks and welcome back!_

_DeathEaters - Wow. I'm blushing! Thank you so much! I'm glad that you are enjoying it and the reason that you may not be familiar with my work is that I most write for CSI: NY. I love to write crime drama, but this was an idea that I just couldn't get away from. I love Dramione, too, but also have a soft spot for Harry/Hermione. I just can't see her with Ron for some reason. I'll think about the new archive and let you know!_

_cliffdiver - If you are to this point, I understand. It was Voldemort first, but I couldn't see him torturing her with the finesse that Lucius could, so that's why it was him. Plus it adds the whole drama with her having to marry Draco! I'm glad you like it so far and hope that you've caught up!_

_ReaderforLife - Yes, he is. I love writing a sweet and cute Draco, but there are times when I just want to write him as his old self...That's just not appropriate for this story! Thanks!_

_DracoMalfoy'sChick - I can't wait to write it! I know some things that are going to happen, but my muse tends to go over the top, so it's going to be interesting, to say the least. I just love James and Lily and can so see them doing that! Thanks!_

_BlueSunsetWaters - You hopefully won't have to wait long. In my tentative outline that I've set up for the remaining chapters, it'll be chapter 28, but that is subject to change due to the will of my muse. Thanks!_


	25. Deeper Shade of Soul

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**_Here's the next chappie!! Thanks to all who reviewed. As always, please R&R. My muse loves the attention. I also do not own the chapter title. That belongs to the wonderful, _Urban Dance Squad.

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

Chapter 25. Deeper Shade of Soul

The following morning, Draco awoke before Hermione. He lay there with her wrapped in his arms, staring at her face. He was trying to control his body's instinctual reaction to her nearness. With a start, he realised that he was content for the first time in his life. He smiled lightly as he continued to hold her. As he was drifting back to sleep, he felt her begin to stir in his arms. "Good morning," he said quietly, not wanting to disturb her.

Hermione awoke slowing, languishing in the feeling of safety that surrounded her. As she became more aware of her surroundings, she realised that she was still wrapped in Draco's arms. She also realised that the nightmares that had been plaguing her had not returned after she'd fallen back to sleep and that it was the best rest she'd had in years. She sighed in contentment as she heard him murmur good morning to her. She opened her eyes, still blurry with sleep, and stared at him. "Good morning."

Draco smiled softly. "How'd you sleep?"

"Very well, thank you," Hermione said as she snuggled further into his arms, not wanting to face the world.

Draco held back a groan as Hermione unconsciously brushed against him and quickly tightened his hold, to prevent himself further torment. "Mia," he said in a gravely voice.

Hermione looked into his eyes, seeing the war raging between lust and keeping his word. Impulsively, she leaned forward and kissed him, sighing as he deepened the kiss and pulled him fully against him. They snogged for a few moments, until he pulled away breathing heavily. His molten eyes stared into her warm chocolate ones before he closed them briefly, praying for strength. She sensed the discomfort he was feeling and pulled away slightly. "Um…I think I'll go get ready for breakfast," she said softly.

Draco opened his eyes, scared to see that she was disappointed, but only saw understanding and a rising confusion in her eyes. He nodded slightly and watched her leave the room and let out the breath he'd been holding. _Merlin save me._

--

That morning had been a turning point in their relationship; Hermione was more comfortable expressing herself to Draco and he had learned a great deal of patience. Hermione was still experiencing the nightmares occasionally, and after one particularly horrible one a few weeks later, she awoke in a cold sweat. After getting some tea and trying to read herself back to sleep unsuccessfully, she gave up.

She wrapped herself in her robe, gathered her wand and her courage and made her way to Draco's quarters. She bit her lip before knocking on his door. It only took a couple of moments before he answered, his hair dishevelled. Hermione swallowed quickly as he noticed he was only dressed in a pair of pyjama pants, slung low on his hips. She looked at his toned body and felt heat rising to her cheeks.

Draco blinked as he saw her standing there. "Mia? Are you okay?" he asked, worry infusing his body.

Hermione nodded shyly. "Yeah, but I keep getting nightmares and haven't sleep properly since Easter." She bit her lip, not quite being able to bring herself to ask him if she could sleep with him.

Draco smiled, pulling her into his arms without a thought. "Do you want to sleep here tonight?" he whispered into her ear.

"If you don't mind," she whispered back.

Draco shook his head as moved back slightly and grabbed her hand to guide her into the bedroom. "I don't mind.'

Hermione looked at him with grateful eyes as they crawled into the bed, Draco pulling her into his arms. "Do you want to talk about it yet?" he asked her. Hermione nodded slightly.

"I think it's a memory that I had buried. I'm running down a dark hallway, Lucius is chasing me. I can see the light coming closer and I know that I'm close to my freedom, but just as I reach it, he catches me," she admitted as she shuddered.

Draco tightened his hold on her. "That was his favourite game to play. Make someone think that they were escaping when they really had no chance," he said with disgust in his voice. "I'm sorry that you had to go through that. My father was a git. Is it bad that I'm happy that he's dead?"

Hermione smiled a sweet smile. "No, it's not. I'm sorry that he was a git and he gave you a horrible childhood, but I realise now how much stronger than him you are. You were given a choice to take the easy road and despite of how you were raised, you didn't. You are a remarkable man, Draco Malfoy and," Hermione paused for a second, "I think I'm in love with you."

Draco looked down at her, surprised at her revelation. "Well," he began slowly. "I know I'm in love with you. Is that okay?"

Hermione nodded, tears filling her eyes and she snuggled into his chest, a feeling of peace washing over her. "Yes," she said softly.

Draco smiled and ran his hands up and down her back soothingly. Hermione felt herself being lulled to sleep and soon was experiencing a dreamless sleep.

--

When they awoke the next morning, both were grateful that it was Saturday. Hermione got up quickly and made her way back to her quarters to change. She grabbed her planner, intent on making headway into the wedding plans. She smirked as she walked back to Draco's quarters.

She got back just as he was getting up. He walked into the sitting area, wiping the sleep out of his eyes. "Mia? You're up early," he said with a yawn.

"I slept really well, so I thought I'd get a jump on the wedding plans. There are some things that we need to decide on. Like, where do we want to hold it, what kind of ceremony…" Hermione trailed off as Draco raised his hand.

"Before we do that, may I have coffee?" He smirked. "And a kiss good morning."

Hermione laughed as she nodded her head. "Coffee is on the table with a warming charm."

Draco's eyebrow rose. "And the kiss?"

Hermione sashayed over to him and gave him a chaste kiss on the cheek. "There you go," she said audaciously.

Draco growled as he pulled her back to into his arms to kiss her properly. Hermione wrapped her arms around his neck as he parted her lips and explored her mouth expertly. Hermione returned the kiss fervently.

When they broke apart, Hermione's lips felt bruised, but her body was tingling. "So," she said as she sat back down, her legs too wobbly to support her properly.

"Yeah, the wedding," Draco returned, surprised by the intensity of the feelings that he was having. "What are our options again?"

Hermione smiled, clearing her head by looking down at her list. "Well, first we need to figure out where we want to get married. Here or the Burrow?"

Draco looked at her honestly. "Really, I'd prefer here because my remaining friends may not feel comfortable at the Burrow."

Hermione nodded her understanding. "Second, I'd like to have a Wizarding ceremony, but would you have any objections to wearing Muggle wedding clothes?" She bit her lip, half because she really wanted to wear the wedding dress that she had found and half because she was envisioning him wearing a black tuxedo.

Draco thought about it for a moment. "No, I wouldn't mind."

Hermione's face light up with her smile. "Thank you. Now, about the rest of the details…" she began and they began to plan the wedding in earnest, both knowing that their time would be occupied for the next month, preparing the students for the end of year exams.

--

The next month passed in a haze of planning for both the end of year exams and the wedding. Hermione and Draco never slept apart, since that was the only thing that was keeping her nightmares at bay. As a result, Hermione discovered a well of energy and patience within her. She had more time to manage all her priorities, while still keeping an ear to the ground to make sure that her students were coping the stressful times okay.

She was also keeping up a steady stream of owls between herself, Ginny and Luna, who was planning her wedding in peace. She was just finishing Luna's latest owl with a laugh when Draco walked into her quarters.

Draco looked at her laughing eyes and wondered what she was reading. "What's so funny?" he asked intrigued.

Hermione shook her head, stifling her laughter. "Luna. She and Neville are getting married on the summer solstice and she keeps warning me about making sure that the black winged Irish snorks are kept at bay. She says that the solstice is their breeding time and we'll have to be careful to make sure that the water near where they are getting married is not infested."

"She's not exactly sane, is she?" Draco asked.

Hermione shrugged. "Honestly, I just think it is part of her. She is a Seer and does have a rather unique view of life, but she's very smart. She's a Ravenclaw and I think she Sees more than she admits to."

Draco shrugged, not knowing her well enough to make that kind of judgement call. He sighed as he settled down next to her, exhausted from his long day. "Merlin, is the end of year always this hectic?"

Hermione smiled in sympathy; she'd felt a similar way her first year of teaching. "The first year it feels like that, but after that, it gets easier. Probably because you've had the students for more than one term and you know more of what their strengths and weaknesses are. I know that helping the seventh years now, is a lot easier since they've been my students since they were third years. I know exactly what they are having trouble with."

Draco sighed. "So I have another rough couple of years before it gets easier?"

"Not really. Next year you'll have more of a grasp of what your students are having trouble with. Actually, I would suggest that you spend these last few weeks of the term evaluating and assessing your returning students. That way, you can make a plan for how to reach them."

Draco raised an eyebrow. "That sounds like a lot of work," he began whilst thinking the idea over in his head. "But, it would only be for one year. Then each year afterward I would just have to assess the first years."

Hermione smiled, noticing how in sync they were with their thoughts. "That's exactly what I thought! The first summer was really difficult to get through all of them, but now I take notes throughout the school year and that makes the plan easier." She paused for a second. "Actually, do you know what a computer is?"

Draco nodded slightly. "I've seen one, but I have no idea how it works," he admitted.

"I have one in my flat and will show you how to use it over the holiday. But anyway, I have a program on it that helps me to organise my students. Maybe we can set it up for you, as well. It should make things easier for you."

Draco sighed, letting his head fall back against the cushion. "That would be wonderful, Mia. Ready to go to supper?"

Hermione smiled as she rose. "Someone has to keep the students in line. I swear, we were never that bad!"

Draco laughed. "Actually, love, we were worse."

Giggling, Hermione followed him out of the room and headed for the Great Hall.

* * *

**AN:** _Okay, first of all, I'm sorry that I'm a day late, but work has been insane and my muse got on a roll last night for chapter 26 (which is currently residing in my beta's email boxes!). Secondly, I'm stunnded. Awed and flabbergasted. 102 story alerts. I actually don't know what to say other than, I'm not worthy! YOU GUYS ROCK!!_

_woaivampire boys - Thanks!_

_spikeecat - You're welcome and Thanks!_

_BlueSunsetWaters - Hooray for my muse writing at all! Truly, I think she wants to write on my CSI: NY story, but I'm not letting her until I finish this one and she's kinda pissed. Thanks!_

_ReaderforLife - Thanks!!_

_Miss Marie101 - I'm blushing!! Thanks!!_

_EdwardHarryRonluvemall - Don't kill me for being a day late! I was really on a roll last night with 26 (of which there is both a clean and an explicit chapter) and I just couldn't stop. Thanks!_

_Kat.1600 - I liked the ending, too! Thanks!_

_Bri Leonard - Thanks! I'll be the first one to admit that I can get kinda lax on reviews (unless, of course, the story is complete crap and I just have to give my..ummm...constructive criticism.). :D_

_Aphina - I aim to please! You know how flakey Lexi has been lately, so hopefully she'll stick around for a bit. :D_


	26. Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**_Here's the next chappie!! Thanks to all who reviewed. As always, please R&R. My muse loves the attention. To everyone in the US, Happy Independence Day and please take a moment to pray for all our troops which help to ensure we get to keep the wonderful rights that we are accustomed to (and pray for a quick return from all war zones)!! Happy Reading!_

**AN#2:**_ There is an explicit version of this chapter posted at adultfanfictiondotnet. If you need to know how to get there, feel free to PM me!_

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**Chapter 26. Absence makes the heart grow fonder**

The next couple of months raced by for the pair. Hermione kept up her practice of sleeping with Draco, although, they never did anything more than kiss. After the last exam had been administered, she let out a sigh of relief. _Finally, I can relax,_ she thought. Overall, she with what she had seen to that point, her students had performed well on the exams. The only exceptions being students that she knew were struggling to begin with. She quickly packed all of the exams into her briefcase and charmed it locked, so she could grade them over the summer. She made a quick note to verify with Minerva which students were choosing not to continue on with Advanced Transfiguration the following year.

After she finished packing up her desk, she walked towards the dungeons, to see how Draco had faired. She had noticed a faint odour of rotten eggs when she had left her classroom and the closer that she got to the dungeons, the stronger the smell got. By the time she had arrived at the classroom, the smell was almost unbearable.

She scrunched up her nose as she looked at Draco, the scowl on his face reminiscent of his days at Hogwarts. Carefully she inhaled, trying not to overwhelm herself with the smell. "What happened?"

Draco growled under his breath. "Stupid student messed up his potion in a dramatic fashion. Luckily, I had put a containment shield around each of the student's caldrons, so the mess wasn't too much, but the smell just won't go away."

Hermione thought for a moment, then drew her wand and muttered a spell. Within seconds, the smell that had permeated the classroom had dissipated.

Draco looked at her in amazement. "How did you do that?"

Hermione just raised an eyebrow. "You try living with the twins; you'll pick up a lot of useful spells," she said dryly.

Draco laughed, feeling the stress of the day melt away. "After what they did at Hogwarts, I'm not surprised. Give me a moment to gather my things and we can leave to unwind before supper."

Hermione nodded and watched him as she gathered his things, her eyes appreciating the athletic form that he had. Even though he didn't get outside to exercise much, he was still as fit as the first time she'd seen him this year. When he finally turned around, she blushed a bit at being caught blatantly staring at him.

"See something you like?" he asked with the trademark Malfoy smirk.

"Nope, not a thing at all," she replied cheekily.

Draco just laughed, feeling the stress of the day ease a bit.

After supper, they moved back to Hermione's quarters so that she could pack.

"So," Draco began. "Where do you live when you are not at Hogwarts?"

Hermione smiled. "You won't believe it."

"Try me."

"At my parents' house. They left it to me," she said softly. "I'll admit that it was difficult the first year after the war had ended, but it's familiar. I just had to have it connected to the Floo and put some disenchantments on it so that the Muggles won't see what really goes on there."

Draco nodded. "I understand that. Mother and Father left the manor to me, obviously, but I just can't live there. I've thought about selling it, but a part of me is opposed to the idea. I mean, it's been Malfoy hands for hundreds of years."

"So where do you live?" Hermione asked out of curiosity.

"In the Wizarding section of Chelsea. I have a relatively small house," he said with a smile. "I do have house elves, but I let them know that if they are unhappy with their status there, then they can leave of their free will and I will give them excellent recommendations for new employment." Hermione smiled brightly as his words. "But all of them swore that they wanted to work for me and even though I offered to pay them, they refused."

Hermione giggled, remember the days of S.P.E.W. "At least you tried, that's what counts," she said as she waved her wand and packed up all her clothes except what she was wearing the next day and her night clothes. "Speaking of houses, do you want to see mine? I can show you the computer and set up the spreadsheet for you."

Draco nodded, wanting to get to know the woman outside of Hogwarts. "I'd love that. When would you like me to come by?"

Hermione thought for a moment, knowing that she needed to get the house ready to receive guests since she didn't have any house elves. "Um. What about the week before the wedding? You could arrive on that Monday, the fourteenth and just stay with me until we get back."

Draco nodded, feeling a bit concerned for her since the nightmares tended to come out when she was sleeping alone. "Are you sure? What about the nightmares?"

Hermione bit her lip and exhaled deeply. "I need to do this Draco. I need to prove to myself that I am really healing; that I can put this behind me." She looked deep into his silver eyes. "I want to be whole again."

Draco smiled softly, loving her courage, before drawing her into his arms. "Then be courageous, my love. I'm just a Floo away."

Hermione nodded as she cast the last charm on her luggage. "Thanks. Are you already packed?"

Draco nodded. "Yes, I finished last night. How about a walk around the lake before we leave?"

Hermione smiled. "That would be nice."

--

The following morning, Hermione grabbed her luggage after seeing the students off to the train. Normally, the teachers would stay for a few days after the end of term, but with so many people having to get married, the majority were setting off for their homes, to plan the upcoming summer.

As she was leaving the room, she noticed Neville walking around the corridors nervously. "Neville? Are you okay?" she asked.

Neville looked up at her and smiled. "I'm fine. I'm just nervous about the wedding. It is only two weeks away."

Hermione nodded. "Does Luna have everything planned?"

"Yeah, she does. Although she does keep going on about the black-winged Irish snorks."

Hermione giggled. "Maybe that's just the way she calms her nerves."

Neville shook his head. "I don't think so. She told me that she knew that we would get married from the first time she saw me in second year."

"That's always a possibility. Are you happy about it though? I know that none of us had the chance to choose who we wanted to marry," she asked him quietly as they walked towards the front doors.

"I am. I've always admired Luna, for the way that she marched to the beat of a different drummer, but she has proved to me over the last six months that she is so much more than she pretends to be. She's let me in and…" Neville trailed off, his love for her showing in his voice.

"Then I'm happy for you. Does she need any help the weekend before the wedding?"

"Not that I know of, but you might want to send her an owl."

Hermione nodded as she reached the front doors, to see Draco waiting on her. "I'll do that." She paused for a second and then quickly hugged Neville. "I'll see you in a couple of weeks."

"Thanks, Mia," he said sincerely as he exchanged a look with Draco.

Together, Hermione and Draco walked outside, so they could Apparate away.

--

When Hermione arrived at her house, she quickly unpacked and made a list of what she needed to do to get it ready for Draco's arrival. She quickly tidied it up, which mainly consisted of getting rid of the dust, then she set up the guest room just in case he wanted to sleep in there.

After she was done with that, she decided to run her errands. She needed to buy food as well as start up her mail delivery again. Currently, she had all of her Muggle mail forwarded to a Wizarding post office, so it could be delivered by owl when she was away at school.

She smiled as she climbed into her car, feeling closer to her parents for doing things the Muggle way. At the grocery store, she made her selections carefully, knowing that Draco would have little knowledge of the preparation of food the Muggle way and wanted to show him how much variety there could be. Feeling happier than she had before the war, she hummed under her breath as she made her purchases.

--

Draco, on the other hand, arrived back at his home to nothing to do. The house elves had kept the house in top condition and if he even tried to cook, he would have a mutiny. Sighing, he decided to start organizing his thoughts on his students, that way when Hermione showed him the computer, he could have the information at hand.

He started out with the sixth year students, since they were going to the more advanced classes, and there weren't that many of them. As he began to go through his notes and memories, he lost himself in the time.

A few hours later, he was started out of his concentration by his elf, Mitzy. "Master Draco, dinner is ready."

Draco jumped a little when she spoke; he hadn't seen her walk into the room. "Oh, thank you Mitzy. Give me a moment to get cleaned up and I'll be right there."

He walked through the silent house, feeling more alone than ever since he was used to sharing dinner with students and professors. Once washed up, he walked into the dinner room, the emptiness making him feel even more despondent.

Sighing, he thought to himself, _this is going to be a long week._

--

By the time the week was over, Hermione was feeling better about herself. She'd only had a nightmare one night and although it was a terrifying, she knew that she was healing from the pain. So, on Sunday night, when she received Draco's owl asking her if she minded him coming a day early, she responded quickly that she didn't mind. She had written back a reply giving him her Floo address and letting him know that she had changed her wards to allow him access.

She was pacing around the living room, nervous and excited about his arrival, feeling for the first time like a woman in love. Finally, about thirty minutes later, Draco arrived. She smiled at him as he dusted off the ash from the Floo.

Draco returned her smile and looked around the small living room. "This is nice," he said.

"Thanks. Let me give you the tour."

Draco nodded as he followed her out of the living room. After she'd had shown him everything, she looked at him. "Do you want the spare bedroom?" she asked, hoping he'd say no.

Draco thought about it. "Do you want me in the spare room?"

Hermione looked a little sheepish. "Not really, but it's up to you."

Draco smirked as he pulled her into his arms. "I'd love nothing more than to sleep in the same bed as you, Mia. This has been a really long week."

Hermione melted into his embrace, loving the way he made her feel wanted. "So, what do you want to do tonight?" she asked into his chest.

"Just be with you," he answered honestly.

Hermione blushed. "Have you ever watched a Muggle movie?"

Draco shook his head. "No, but I've heard about them."

Hermione smiled. "Then that's what we'll do."

--

A few hours later, after they had finished the movie _Titanic_, they decided to go to bed. Hermione got ready in the bathroom, still shy, whilst Draco got ready in the bedroom. When she walked out, dressed in a pair of comfortable pyjama bottoms and a camisole, she found Draco dressed in just a pair of black pyjama bottoms.

Blushing lightly, she crawled underneath the covers and snuggled into the pillows. Draco soon joined her and pulled her into his arms. "Good night," she said softly.

Draco returned her words with a soft kiss which soon became heated. Hermione groaned in pleasure as they explored each other's mouths and wound her arms around his neck, pulling him closer.

Her back arched as his hands began to wander all over her body, making her shiver in anticipation. Unconsciously, she began to rock her hips against his and as his lips caressed her jaw, he let out a gasp of pleasure.

"Mia," he moaned. "Merlin, I want you so much."

Hermione felt a rush of pleasure at his murmured words and made a decision. "Draco? I'm ready to go further, perhaps not all the way, but I want more," she pleaded as his hands caressed her.

Draco stopped, his hands moving to pull her hips towards her, nestling himself in her head. "Are you sure?" he whispered, not wanting to break the spell.

In answer she pulled his head back to her and kissed him passionately.

* * *

**AN: **_Okay, so I'm working on 27 already and I think this will end up to be either 29 or 30 chapters, so it's almost done!_

_Kat.1600 - First of all, congrats on being the 200th review! Virtual cookies and champagne are being sent your way! Thanks! I like the way they're going, so hopefully happy times are ahead!_

_BlueSunsetWaters - blushing Thanks! Was this soon enough? _

_woaivampireboys - Thanks!_

_DracoMalfoy'sChick - No worries, it happens! Thanks and they are getting some relief from their mutal frustration!_

_ReaderforLife - Thanks! So do I!_

_EdwardHarryRonluvemall - I try to post either Thursdays or Fridays depending on when I send the chap to my betas. Since I don't have 27 done yet, it may be Friday of next week before I post again. Thanks!_

_Kay of Lamvia Terra - Wow...Straight through! That's rough once it gets over 10 chapters! Thanks!!_


	27. Lions and Snakes and Nargels, oh my!

Disclaimer: I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**_Here's the next chappie!! Thanks to all who reviewed. As always, please R&R. My muse loves the attention. Many thanks to Aphina for the beta! There is an explicit version of this chapter on adultfanfiction (dot) net._

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**Chapter 27. Lions and Snakes and Nargels, oh my!**

When Hermione and Draco awoke the next morning, they were both still basking in the lovemaking of the previous night. Hermione felt comfortable, loved, and extremely glad that she had not had any flashbacks to her rape. Thinking it over, while still wrapped securely in Draco's arms, she realized that it was because nothing she had experienced with Lucius had prepared her for the loving way that he sought her release. _He even held himself back,_ she thought as she remembered the pained look on his face as she's flown over the precipice. _Maybe, just maybe once we actually have intercourse, I'll be able to forget the horrible memories._

Draco was thinking along similar lines, but he was still astonished that they had gotten as far as they had. _Merlin, she is so unbelievably sexy,_ he thought as he tightened in hold on her slightly. He heard her sigh in contentment and nestled himself back into the pillows, not wanting to face the world just yet.

Finally, the urgent call of nature regrettably forced Hermione out of his arms. She quickly attended to it and as she was walking back into the room, her stomach rumbled loudly. Giggling, she bent over the bed and whispered into Draco's ear, "Are you hungry?"

Draco groaned at the reaction that her husky voice caused and quickly pulled her down to him. "Not for food," he muttered before kissing her passionately.

Hermione was shocked at the initial reaction but kissed him back just as passionately. Lying across his body, she could feel his reaction and feeling a bit more like her old self, she wanted to explore.

Draco groaned as her hands roamed his body and tightly fisted his hands in the sheets as not to startle her, giving her free reign, which she willingly took advantage of.

--

When they awoke for the second time that day, both of the stomachs were rumbling. "Merlin, you are going to be the death of me," Draco told her in a loving voice. "I've never had such a strong reaction to that particular act before."

Hermione blushed. "So, I was okay?"

Draco kissed the top of her head slightly. "I'd give you an Outstanding, Ms. Granger," he replied back cheekily.

Hermione just rolled her eyes as she climbed out of the bed. "I need a shower," she said matter-of-factly. "You can use the guest bathroom to clean up," she was interrupted by her stomach, "and then we can eat some food."

Draco just smirked, wondering what it would be like to share a shower with her, but knowing that she wasn't ready for that step. "All right," he agreed.

Thirty minutes later, Hermione was cooking some scrambled eggs and bacon, her wet hair in a bun, when Draco walked into the kitchen. He sniffed appreciatively. "Can I help with anything?" he asked.

Hermione nodded. "You can set the table," she replied before directing him to the plates, silverware and glasses.

Soon they sat down for breakfast in silence, just enjoying each other's company.

Once done, Draco offered to tidy up, which Hermione gratefully accepted since she truly hated to clean the kitchen. She walked into the living room, to flip on the Muggle stereo; she'd never gotten used to the Wizarding Wireless and preferred to listen to Muggle music. Running her finger lightly over the CD cases, she finally chose the Avril Livigne CD and putting it into the player. She smiled as the music began and then booted up the computer. She opened up the Excel program and began to put together a new spreadsheet for Draco.

She was halfway done with setting up the basics when Draco walked in and looked at her curiously. "What are you doing?"

Hermione turned. "I thought that I'd start the spreadsheet for you, so that way you can input the data."

Draco looked at her aghast. "Um, Mia. I have no idea how to do that," he admitted honestly.

Hermione just smiled. "Don't worry. You're not a dumb person, so I think I'll be able to teach you."

Draco just looked at her nervously as she motioned for him to sit next to her.

"First of all, the basics." She pointed to the different parts of the computer. "This is the monitor, keyboard and the CPU."

"CPU?"

"Computer processing unit. It basically is the workhorse of the system. Anyway, you type on a keyboard like this," she demonstrated, "and you can move the pointer, see that little arrow, around by moving the mouse."

She continued to show him how to use the computer until she thought he had a grasp and then switched places with him. He looked decidedly nervous at assuming the driver's seat, but Hermione's face was a picture of confidence. She slowly guided him through the system until a couple of hours had passed.

When they finally took a break, she beamed, "You see. I told you that you would be good at it."

Draco just nodded, still feeling nervous, but also still feeling some trepidation. "I think so, but it's going to take a while before I am comfortable with this."

"Don't worry about, we have a week before Neville's wedding and I think you might be good at it by then," she assured him.

Draco just nodded as he followed her back to the kitchen to help prepare dinner. "I can think of better things to do during the week," he said in a licentious voice.

Hermione blushed at his words, but uttered no objections. _This is going to be an interesting week._

--

The week passed quickly as when they awoke on the morning of Luna's wedding, an hour after the alarm had gone off, Hermione was almost in a panic. She rushed out of bed and into the bathroom to shower before Draco was fully awake.

He lay there for a moment, puzzled at her actions until his brain began to work and he realized the date. He, too, got up quickly and made his way to his own shower, going without their morning ritual of pleasing each other. As he stood in the shower, the hot water washing over his body, he felt his blood began to heat up as he fantasised about Hermione taking her own shower. Muttering curses under his breath, he quickly switched the water to cold, to ease his reaction and clear his thoughts.

Five minutes later, shivering slightly, he exited the shower and got dressed in his formal black robes. When he arrived back in the bedroom, he found Hermione rushing around, throwing things in a bag. He watched with raised eyebrows as she seemed to flit around like one of the Cornish pixies that Professor Lockhart had freed in second year. He shook his head in amazement and he finally grabbed her arm lightly. "Mia, calm down. We're not late; we'll be there on time," he said soothingly.

Hermione shook herself, realising she was acting like a fool. She took a sheepish breath. "Thanks," she said as she grabbed her bag. "I think I'm ready to go. Luna gave me a Portkey to get to the wedding site, so shall we go?"

Draco smiled as he placed his wand in his pocket. He bowed slightly, "Lead on, my lady," he drawled.

Hermione just giggled, the last of her panic flowing out of her. She led him to the living room and picked up the invitation that Luna had sent. Draco grabbed a corner as well, and within seconds, both felt the familiar pull behind their navels.

They arrived at the outdoor garden within moments and Hermione smiled when she saw what Luna had done. There were flowers everywhere, many placed carefully in a huge arch at the head of the isle.

Hermione turned her head and saw the glitter of water to her left. She walked over to the serene pond and thought about what Luna had said about the snorks. Shaking her head, she dutifully performed the spell that Luna said would keep them at bay. Then, leaving Draco to fend for himself, she walked into the tent that was set up for the bride to get ready in.

"Hey, Luna. I charmed the water so that the snorks can't get out during the wedding."

Luna turned, a dreamy smile on her face. "Thank you, Hermione. Is Ginny here yet?"

Hermione shook her head. "I haven't seen her, but she should be here shortly. Are you ready to get dressed?"

Luna nodded. "I hope Neville approves of my wedding dress. I chose a Muggle dress," she said as she held it up. It was a simple white sheath dress, made in the Renaissance style with flowing sleeves that gave it an ethereal look.

"That's gorgeous, Luna," Hermione breathed as Ginny walked into the tent.

"I agree," she said looking at them. "Why are you dressed, Hermione?"

Hermione blushed. "I overslept."

Ginny studied her intently, noticing the glow she had about her. "You had sex!" she exclaimed excitedly.

Hermione's blush deepened to the darkest red. "Kind of," she admitted.

"What to you mean kind of?" Ginny interrogated.

Hermione bit her lip. "Not intercourse, just oral."

"Really," Ginny smirked. "So, how was it?"

"Let's just say, so far our future sex life looks promising and leave it at that. This is supposed to be Luna's day," Hermione retorted, feeling shy.

Ginny sensed her discomfort and nodded, willing to let the subject drop. "All right, let's get you two dressed and then we can do hair and make up."

--

Outside the tent, Draco, Lee and Neville were talking amicably. Neville looked at Lee and asked, "So, how is married life treating you?"

Lee smiled. "Wonderfully, although Ginny's cravings keep getting more weird. Last night she was having weird cravings for ice cream and salsa for some reason." He shuddered at the memories of one night searching multiple stores trying to find something to ease her cravings.

Draco smiled. "How are Jamie and Lily adjusting to living in a different house?"

Lee shrugged. "We have our good days and our bad. I swear every day they will say, 'but Grandma lets me do that!'" He rolled his eyes. "I know very well that Molly has not let either of them near a broom."

The other two laughed easily, both thinking ahead to the possibility of them having children, Neville with eagerness and Draco with worry. He didn't want to turn out like his father. "They do tend to try to do that," Neville said pleasantly.

It was Lee's turn to query Neville. "So, what's Luna like? From what little I remember from Hogwarts, she seemed a little…" he trailed off, not wanting to be impolite.

"Out there?" Neville offered.

"Yeah, but I didn't want to say that."

Neville shrugged. "That's mostly an act. She's extremely smart and there are times when I wonder why she loves me."

Draco felt a bit awkward and choose to exit himself from the conversation, walking over to the water. He stared at his reflection, thinking about what it would be like to have children with Hermione. _No doubt about it, she'll make a great mom, but what about me? The only example of a father I have is Lucius and everyone will admit that he's not a good example. What do I do?_

His thoughts continued down that line until the guests started to arrive. He dutifully took his place in the chairs and watched as people had different reactions to him. Some of the Gryffindors in attendance, stared at him with hatred in their eyes, but others just gave him a wide berth. The atmosphere took on a nervous edge that didn't ease until Lee sat next to him.

That move seemed to symbolise to everyone around that he was not to be feared and the tension eased tremendously. Draco turned to thank him, when a soft harp started playing.

The guests turned expectantly to look down the aisle and saw Hermione standing there. She was dressed in a flowing green dress that seemed to caress her body. In her hair were white daisies. She stepped carefully down the aisle to the music, with a quick smile for him when she passed.

Ginny followed her in short order, her pregnant belly prominent in the form fitting dress. As she came to rest next to Hermione, the music changed slightly, seeming to quiver in the air and Luna began her journey down the aisle, adoration showing on her face as she looked at Neville.

Draco turned to look at Neville, who had a stunned look on his face. He was enraptured at his bride. Smiling, Draco settled back his chair and began to study Hermione, lustful thoughts coming to his head.

He stared at her throughout the brief bonding ceremony, not even hearing what the official had to say. He was started out of his musings when the rest of the guests stood up and clapped. Shaking his head he joined them, now anxious for the day when he could call Hermione his wife.

* * *

**AN:** _Okay, guys. Sorry for the wait but I've been waiting for my beta to get it back to me (and they were busy). But on the bright side, I have the story completely finished and am just waiting for my betas to get the chaps back to me. Yeah! On to review responses…_

_Jocat - I don't know if you're reading here or reading on the other site, so I'm putting this review in both! Thanks for trying the adult version and I'm glad you liked it! I'd tickle my muse, but since she's a dragon she'd probably bite me. Escpecially since I made her write 5 chapters in 3 days. (LOL) Thanks!_

_Kat.1600 - You're welcome! Thanks!!_

_Bella1992 - No worries! I'm glad you are caught up! I'm glad that she's getting better, too because I was running out of ideas for the story! Thanks!_

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_iPodListener - Thank you! I'm blushing!!_

_DracoMalfoy'sChick - Some of her fears, but it's still going to be an experience. thanks!!_

_Aphina - No worries. RL has been kicking my butt too. Hopefully all three of our schedules will match up again at some point! _


	28. Closer and Closer

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**_Here's the next chappie!! Thanks to all who reviewed. As always, please R&R. My muse loves the attention. _

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**Chapter 28. Closer and Closer**

The month and a half following Luna and Neville's wedding seemed to either rush by or drag on depending on the day. Days that she spent with Draco, either at her house or his, seemed to fly by and the days they spent apart seemed to crawl.

They worked together on the wedding and at Draco's insistence they decided to have a semi-Muggle ceremony. A few weeks before the ceremony, they decided to meet Minerva in Hogsmeade to go over the actual ceremony since she was the only one that they both were comfortable enough with to officiate it for them.

Hermione arrived at Three Broomsticks first and gratefully accepted a butterbeer from Madame Rosemerta. As she waited patiently for Draco and Minerva, she thought back to the good times that they had had in this pub. She was smiling fondly in remembrance as Minerva walked in and sat down beside her.

"Remembering the old times," the older witch said with a smile.

Hermione nodded. "Yeah. Ron, Harry and I would come here and plan what we were going to do to try to defeat Voldemort," she admitted.

"So I had gathered from Albus. Did you really think that he didn't know what you three were doing all the time? He just turned a blind eye to it since he knew it was necessary for the defeat of the Dark Lord."

A flash of regret passed over both of their faces at what the war had cost them as Draco walked into the tavern. He ordered a Firewhiskey from Madame Rosemerta and quickly settled down next to the women. "Everything okay?" he asked when he saw their sombre faces.

Hermione smiled at him. "Just remembering Harry and Ron," she admitted. "But, now that you are here, let's talk about the ceremony."

Minerva nodded as she took a drink from her butterbeer. "From our previous conversations, I gather that you want to have a Muggle ceremony?"

Draco and Hermione nodded. "Yes," Hermione answered. "To some extent, but we do want to have a Wizarding bonding ceremony. I think that should be fairly easy to work into the ceremony, correct?"

Minerva nodded. "Yes, we can work it into the ring ceremony since they are very similar." She smiled. "Dobby is very excited that you requested it to be held at Hogwarts. He can't wait to prepare the menu for you. Have you decided to do a sit down dinner?"

"No," Draco said. "I'm not sure if that's a good idea considering that the remaining friends that I do have are not..." He paused, groping for the right word.

"As forgiving as they could be," Hermione finished. "We want to minimise the bloodshed at our reception."

Minerva laughed. "I don't foresee anything happening, but I do understand. We can have a buffet with finger foods. Now, onto a serious question. In the binding ceremony, it is required that a member of each of your families come up to the dais with you to give their blessing. Hermione, I can substitute one of the Weasley's if you want since your parents are dead, but Draco, who do you want that to be?"

Draco sighed, a dark look coming over his face. "Honestly, I don't know any family that I have left. The only blood relative that I can think of is Andromeda and I don't know if she would be willing to do that."

Minerva sighed in relief. "She is. I've already contacted her about it and her words were 'Since the boy didn't turn out like his father, I'd be more that willing to do that.'"

Draco flushed a little, not knowing how to feel about his estranged aunt's vote of confidence. "Um, I don't know what to say."

Hermione laid her hand on top of his. "Thank you will work," she said.

Draco flushed. "Then I will have to thank her when I see her." He turned to Minerva. "When do I need to ask her by?"

Minerva shook her head. "Within the next couple of days would be nice. It gives her time to prepare." Sensing Draco's unease with the subject, she changed topics. "On to your vows. It is a Muggle tradition that sometimes the bride and the groom wish to write their own vows. I personally think it is an excellent idea, but do you want to?"

Both nodded their agreement. "I think it's wonderfully romantic," Hermione said with a dreamy expression on her face.

Draco turned his head and rolled his eyes slightly, but he agreed. "I think so, since the Muggle ceremony does nothing to address magic."

Minerva held back a giggle because she had seen Draco roll his eyes. "Good, then. Everything else, you've already gotten back to me on." She smiled slightly. "Now, Draco, I know that you are planning the honeymoon and I expect both of you back by the time the new school term starts. I'll accept no excuses."

Draco returned her smirk. "Oh, we will be, Headmistress."

Minerva nodded as she got up to leave. "I will take my leave, then. I expect to see you the Sunday before the service, so we can have a rehearsal."

Hermione and Draco nodded as they waved good-bye to her. Hermione looked at Draco. "So where are we honeymooning?"

Draco lifted an eyebrow. "You will find out when we leave, my love. No time sooner."

Hermione playfully slapped him on the arm. "Tease. I think that I'll go and see if Ginny will stand up with me during the bonding ceremony. I suggest that you do the same with your Aunt Andromeda."

Draco sighed, but knew that the sooner he got the visit over with, the better he would feel, so he quickly drank the rest of his Firewhiskey and with a chaste kiss to Hermione, made his way outside. He quickly made his way home, to change as well as to send an owl to Andromeda to ask when the best time to call was.

A couple of hours later, when he was sitting trying to read in order to distract himself from his nervousness, when an unfamiliar owl pecked on his window. He let the grey owl in and gave it a treat when he untied the letter from it.

"_Draco, thank you for your courtesy. You can come by for dinner this evening. It will be served at seven p.m.," _the letter read.

Draco sighed and checked the time; he still had a couple of hours before he needed to leave. Feeling more nervous, he picked up his book, _A Discourse on Vampires,_ by Martine Labelle, to help to pass the time.

At six-thirty, he was standing on the Tonk's doorstep, feeling as if butterflies were trapped in his stomach. He cautiously rang the bell, not certain of his reception and when the door opened, was shocked by the woman that he saw.

She looked almost exactly like Bellatrix, but a kinder version of her. Her brown hair was pulled back into a bun and she had laugh lines around her mouth. After the shock of the semblance wore off, he stuck out his hand. "Andromeda, I presume?" he asked.

Andromeda smiled as she shook his hand. "Draco. Welcome to my home. Be careful, Teddy is still awake and he's at the destructive phase of his childhood," she said trying to put the young man at ease.

Draco laughed, the tension flowing out of his body. "I think I'll be okay. James and Lily Potter are in that stage as well, so I've gotten used to them." He paused for a second before following her into the quaint house. "You have a lovely home."

Andromeda looked at him and saw that his admiration was sincere. "Thank you. I know that it's not near what either of us grew up with, but I do like to keep a tidy home." She paused for a second. "Please, call me Dromeda."

Draco nodded as she led him to the drawing room. "All right, Aunt Dromeda."

As they sat down on the well worn chairs, Andromeda played hostess. "Would you like something to drink, my dear? I have coffee, pumpkin juice, butterbeer."

Draco thought for a moment. "Coffee would be lovely, thank you." As she left to fetch the coffee, he studied the room carefully. The furniture was worn, but in quite good condition and looked as though it was cared for lovingly. There were plenty of books about, both Muggle and Wizarding, and they looked well read.

As she walked back into the room, carrying the tray holding a silver coffee service, Andromeda studied her nephew carefully. _Yes, he looked like that prat Lucius, but with more good humour in his eyes,_ she thought. "So Draco, what can I do for you?"

Draco smiled, liking that she was not one to skate around an issue. "Well, I wanted to ask you if you would stand up beside me during the bonding ceremony when I marry Hermione."

She nodded. "I had expected that after Minerva contacted me, but I do have a question for you. How do you really feel about the fact that she is Muggle born?"

Draco thought about her question for a few moments before answering. "It doesn't matter to me. If I had gone down the road that my father wanted me to take, then I would probably feel differently, but I didn't. I think I've loved her since our fourth year," he confided.

Andromeda raised her eyebrows. "Really?"

Draco nodded. "Yeah. She has the amazing mind and it was seeing her do things that Father said a Muggle born was not able to succeed at that changed my mind. She's the one who kept me from going down that path."

Andromeda nodded carefully, the last pieces of the puzzle coming into place for her. "So through loving her, you managed to escape the darkness. I know how you feel. That's how I felt about Ted. I just knew that what my family tried to instil on me was wrong when I met him. Our hearts choose to love without the prejudices that are imparted to our heads." She smiled at him. "And for that reason, I would be proud to stand up with you at the bonding ceremony."

Draco looked at her, seeing compassion in her gaze. "Thank you, Aunt Dromeda. It means a lot to me."

He was about say more when a whirlwind with turquoise hair ran into the room. "Grandma! Elksie says that dinner is ready!" the whirlwind said as he came to a stop.

Andromeda looked at her grandson. "Teddy, that is no way to behave in front of a guest." The little boy nodded, looking downcast. "But, since you are in here, I'd like to introduce you to your cousin, Draco."

Teddy looked up at him, his hair changing from turquoise to purple quickly. "Hi," he muttered shyly.

Draco smiled as he moved to kneel in front of the boy. "Hi. It's very nice to meet you," he said softly, trying to cheer the boy up.

Teddy smiled before nodding. "How are you my cousin?" he asked.

Draco nodded. "Well, your grandmother is my mother's sister, so technically we are first cousins."

"Did you know my parents?" the inquisitive child asked.

Draco felt a stab of remorse go through him at his treatment of Remus. "I knew your father a little bit; he taught at my school while I was there, but I didn't know them very well," he said with regret.

"Oh, okay," Teddy accepted as he grabbed Draco's hand. "Come on! It's time for dinner!" he shouted as he pulled Draco towards the dining room.

Draco just laughed and allowed himself to be pulled towards the room, feeling much better about meeting the rest of his family.

--

Hermione was kneading bread dough when there was a knock at her door. Wiping her hands on her apron, she went to open the door, knowing that it had to be someone that she knew since her wards hadn't gone off.

When she opened the door, she found the very pregnant Ginny standing there, looking frustrated. Ginny didn't even bother for Hermione to greet her, she just stated, "Never get pregnant. I'd forgotten what it was like to feel like a beached whale."

Hermione laughed. "Come on Ginny, you love having kids, don't try to deny that."

Ginny shrugged. "I know, but I like being able to see my shoes, too. You do know that I'm due the week before your wedding, right?"

Hermione nodded. "I know. I have Madame Malkin on standby to alter your dress as needed. I have it on good word that as long as you give birth two days before the wedding or sooner, it will be fine. If not, then Luna will be my matron of honour and then I'll have your mom stand up with me during the bonding ceremony instead of you."

Ginny smiled; she'd know that Hermione had wanted her to stand up for her during the bonding ceremony ever since she had told her about it. "As long as you have a back up plan, I'm okay then."

Hermione leaned over and gave her friend a hug. "Ginny, you know I always have a backup plan." She bit her lip. "If I had been conscious when Harry and Ron had gone after Voldemort then they would probably still be alive, but I wasn't and I'm always going to feel guilty about that."

Ginny leaned back and looked into Hermione's eyes. "Mia, you can't change the past, so don't dwell on it."

Hermione dabbed the tears away from her eyes as she nodded. "That's just it. I don't feel guilty about loving Draco and I feel bad for that."

Ginny sighed, understanding where she was coming from. "I know what you mean. I loved Harry with all my heart, but with Lee, it just feels right. I can't explain it, but it's almost feels that this was destined to be."

Hermione nodded. "Exactly! I just felt like I was somehow betraying his memory, but couldn't feel bad for it."

Ginny smiled. "Don't worry about it. Destiny works in mysterious ways. Who's to say that even if they had survived, we would still be with them? First love is always fleeting."

Hermione smiled, feeling better. "Thank you Gin. Now, I've got to get back to making my bread, so do you want to follow me into the kitchen so we can continue our visit?"

Ginny nodded and laughed as she followed her back into the kitchen.

* * *

**AN: **_Okay guys! Here's 28. I do have 29 and 30 back from my beta, so how soon I post this will be up to y'all! If I get 15 reviews for this chapter (on fanfiction), then I will post the next one!_

_Bella1992 - You won't have to wait much longer...That is in chapter 29 (and it's a long chapter, too!). Thanks!_

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	29. The Wedding of the Century

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**_Here's the next chappie!! Thanks to all who reviewed. As always, please R&R. My muse loves the attention. There is an adult version of this at Adultfanfiction (dot) net!!_

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**Chapter 29. The Wedding of the Century**

The week prior to the wedding was hectic for Hermione. She was so busy caught up on finalising the details that she barely had time to see Draco. They had seen each other that Tuesday and she had warned him then that she wasn't going to have much time, since she was getting ready for the new term to start as well.

He had agreed with her, as he had just finalised the plans for the honeymoon to a remote island in the Caribbean that catered to Wizarding couples and he still had his own school plans to go over. With her help, he had purchased a computer so that he could fully prepare for how to teach his returning students. He shook his head at the memory of the trip to the Muggle store. He'd been completely ignorant of how something like that worked and had let her do the talking.

He barely resisted the urge to take it apart once he got home, not knowing if he could ever put it back together. When they had returned to his apartment, she had made the necessary changes so that the unit worked off of magic instead of Muggle electricity and he had been enthralled once he started playing around on it.

Still, as with most things, once he got the hang of it, he was truly enjoying using the Muggle technology and wondered if he could perhaps market it to the Wizarding world. He shook his head out of his thoughts when Blaise arrived. "Blaise! I didn't expect you so early. How are you doing?" he asked his friend.

Blaise smiled, his dark eyes taking in the relaxed state that Draco was in. "I thought that I might have to calm your nerves before the wedding. Obviously I was wrong," he said with a smile.

Draco smiled back as he fixed them a drink. "I'm not nervous about the wedding. Now the honeymoon, I'm a little nervous about that."

Blaise nodded his head in understanding. "How are things going on that front?"

Draco sighed. "It's been rough a couple of times. Flashbacks are never predictable and Hermione feels horrible after one of them." He sighed again. "It can be a bit frustrating."

Blaise nodded in sympathy. "Other than that, how are things going?"

Draco smiled, a light entering his eyes. "It's going rather well. We get along and have some spirited debates. It's nice to be with a woman who appreciates a good debate."

Blaise laughed, knowing that Draco had been frustrated with the brainless bints that he had been dating. "Good to know, mate."

Draco looked at him. "So, when are you going to settle down? Or are you just having too much fun with your lady of the week?"

Blaise rolled his eyes. "I'll have you know that I've been dating Vanessa for six months now. Body like a goddess with the brain of scholar. I think I'm infatuated." He saw Draco's curious look. "I met her at a fundraiser for impoverished wizards and she completely blew me off."

Draco laughed, knowing that few women had that reaction around his friend. "Really? I like her already."

Blaise just gave him a sharp look. "Anyway, I pursued her for three months before she finally accepted my invitation for dinner and we just hit it off. You'll get to meet her on Friday; that's when she is coming into town for the wedding."

Draco smiled. "I can't wait."

Blaise shook his head. "Now, about your stag party…"

--

Hermione was in hot water, literally. She had decided, along with Ginny, that instead of a hen party, she was going to get pampered and her bridesmaids along with her. Currently, they were sitting in a hot tub, getting relaxed. Ginny had performed a special charm on herself so that the baby wouldn't get overheated. "This feels so nice," Hermione muttered.

The other two murmured their agreement as then tension of the past couple of months faded away. "I haven't felt this good since my first month of pregnancy," Ginny said.

"I agree, this is fabulous. Thanks, Mia."

Hermione smiled. "Up next is massages, then facials and finally a manicure and pedicure," she said, outlining the schedule for them.

"I don't know what good a pedicure is going to do me when I can't see my toes," Ginny muttered, for she was a week overdue and the baby seemed in no rush to be born.

Hermione giggled. "Come on, Gin. You know that in a couple of days, you'll be a new mother again and you'll be able to see your toes!" Hermione countered.

Ginny laughed, knowing how true that was. "All right. So after the baby is born, I'll be able to see my toes. But you won't be there for the birth, Mia. You'll be on your honeymoon."

"I'm just a Floo away, I promise you. I made Draco promise me that if you went into labour then I could get back to England quickly. I even charmed a coin so that once you go into labour; you can send me a message."

Luna chuckled. "Always the planner. Mia, you have an answer for everything!"

"Well, I want to be present for my future godchild's birth." She was about to say more when their attendants entered and told them it was time for the massages. Eagerly the three women got out of the water and onto the tables, their muscles quite relaxed already.

--

Draco managed to convince Blaise that he didn't want a lavish stag party, so a group of friends just gathered for a quiet night of poker. He had been introduced to the game during his year of exile and it had become quite the obsession with him. He liked being able to assess his opponents and was a fairly good player.

So him, Neville, Lee and Blaise sat around the night before the wedding, smoking cigars and playing at poker. He was surprised by how good Neville was at the game and they all admittedly had a good time.

Finally around midnight, he called it quits, wanting to get enough sleep so that he didn't mess up his vows the next day. He had worked long and hard on getting the words right, so that he felt that he'd said everything that needed to be said.

Crawling into the bed, he realised with a start that he would never sleep alone again and to his shock, he was not unhappy about that. With that revelation, he closed his eyes and let sleep overtake him.

--

The morning of the wedding, Hermione awoke feeling nervous. As she lay in bed going over the vows she had written, she carefully thought about her feelings for Draco compared to Ron. She had been honest with Ginny when she told her that she wasn't exactly sure if she had ever felt so strongly for Ron.

After thinking it over for several minutes, she came to the realisation that she did truly love Ron and there was no way to tell what her life would have been like if he hadn't died. She also realised that she couldn't feel guilty for loving Draco, since Ron wasn't present.

With those thoughts, she made her way into the bathroom to take a shower. After her shower, she walked into the kitchen, knowing that she needed to eat a hearty breakfast, since she wouldn't get another chance to eat until the reception. And she didn't want to faint due to hunger at the wedding. She cooked a hearty breakfast, with sausage, eggs, bacon, toast and tea. The smell brought Luna and Ginny down from their beds.

"Good morning," she greeted them pleasantly. "Eat up because we need to be at Hogwarts in two hours to set everything up."

Ginny and Luna nodded and dug into the meal. An hour and a half later, they were finished with breakfast and gathered all of their necessary accoutrements. They Flooed directly to Minerva's office, where she looked up at them in surprise.

"You're here early," she said.

Hermione nodded. "I wanted to go over the seating and make sure that everything is perfect."

Minerva nodded. "You girls are going to get ready in Gryffindor Tower and the men in the Slytherin Dungeons."

Hermione nodded as they left the office to go put their stuff in the tower, so that it would be easy to get ready.

--

Draco awoke on Saturday morning with anticipation fluttering in his stomach. He decided to go flying to take his mind off of things before he had to leave for the wedding. He knew that Hermione had planned on arriving at the castle early and he'd been warned not to arrive before eleven a.m. so as to not see her during her inspection. He didn't understand the Muggle custom of not seeing the bride before the wedding, but he had agreed to it for her.

So he killed time flying with Blaise and then at eleven on the dot, Flooed to McGonagall's office. Minerva greeted him with a smile before directing him to the Slytherin dungeon so that he could get ready.

He arrived in the dungeon to see Neville and Lee already there. Neville was going to stand up with him as a groomsman since Hermione had wanted both Ginny and Luna standing with her.

Blaise nodded to the men cordially, not wanting to cause an incident.

Draco smiled as he realised that everyone was going to try to get along. "So, Neville, Lee, how are you doing today?"

Neville smiled. "Good and you?"

"I'm doing well."

"I'm just hoping that Ginny doesn't go into labour during the ceremony," Lee stated honestly. "She was due last week."

Draco nodded, knowing from his conversation with Hermione that that was a particular concern of hers. "Knowing Hermione, she'll be prepared for that and we'll rush through the vows if Ginny shows any sign of giving birth."

Lee, Neville and Blaise laughed as they sat down on the couch, not needing to get ready quite yet. "I wonder what the girls are doing." Draco mused.

--

Over in Gryffindor tower, Luna and Ginny were helping Hermione into the wedding dress she had seen at Madame Malkin's. The A-line dress fit her perfectly and the sheer sleeves accented her toned arms and delicate wrists. Luna fastened the tiny satin covered buttons that ran up the back, while Ginny decided on how to do her hair.

"Hum," Ginny mused whilst tapping her wand lightly on her lips. "An up-do definitely, but let me see your veil again, Mia."

Hermione obliged her and withdrew the delicate lace veil from her bag. It was a cathedral length veil that attached to her head with a tiara. It had roses made of embroidered crystals throughout the veil, making it sparkle.

Ginny nodded then muttered a spell. Quickly, Hermione's hair curled itself in to ringlets that barely touched her shoulders and with another muttered spell, the tiara attached itself to her head.

Luna, in the meantime, had muttered a few spells of her own and enhanced Hermione with a minimum of make up, making her look very natural. Hermione looked at her reflection in the mirror and felt her eyes tearing up. "Thank you so much," she said softly.

Ginny and Luna just nodded as the Fat Lady's portrait opened and Molly and Arthur walked in. "Hermione, dear, you look beautiful," Molly gushed.

Hermione smiled at her and looked at Arthur, who was giving her away. "You do," he said softly.

Molly wiped her eyes before continuing, "The guests are here. Draco, Blaise and Neville are standing nervously on the dais and everyone is waiting on you." She looked at her carefully. "Are you ready?"

Hermione nodded, not trusting herself to speak without breaking down in tears.

Molly seemed to understand and gave her a hug. "Jamie and Lily are ready and Bill has the music queued up," she said as she lead the procession to the garden by the lake.

Once in place, Molly nodded to Bill as she made her way down to her seat in front. Bill flicked his wand and _Fugue in G minor_ by Bach floated across the garden. Jamie and Lily walked down the aisle, much more sedately than at Ginny's wedding, followed by Luna and then Ginny.

When Ginny was in place, Bill flicked his wand again and _The Four Seasons_ by Vivalde came one. All of the guests arose and turned towards the back, where Hermione and Arthur were stepping slowly down the aisle.

Hermione felt her breath catch in her throat at the sight of Draco wearing the black tuxedo with tails on it. He looked like an aristocrat, with his white blonde hair contrasting to the darkness of the tux.

Draco was having a similar tongue tying experience as he caught sight of Hermione, he couldn't take his eyes off of her. When they came to rest in front of him, he gazed at her, love blossoming in his chest.

"Who gives this woman to this man?" Minerva asked.

"Myself and Molly Weasley," Arthur answered before lifting her veil from Hermione's face and giving her a kiss on the cheek.

Hermione looked Draco deep in the eyes, feeling a sense of rightness coming over her.

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to witness the union of this man and this woman in the service of holy matrimony.

"In times past it was believed that the human soul shared characteristics with all things divine. It is this belief which assigned virtues to the cardinal directions; East, South, West and North. It is in this tradition that a blessing is offered in support of this ceremony.

"Blessed be this union with the gifts of the East.  
Communication of the heart, mind, and body  
Fresh beginnings with the rising of each Sun.  
The knowledge of the growth found in the sharing of silences.

"Blessed be this union with the gifts of the South.  
Warmth of hearth and home  
The heat of the heart's passion  
The light created by both to illuminate the darkest of times.

"Blessed be this union with the gifts of the West.  
The deep commitments of the lake The swift excitement of the river  
The refreshing cleansing of the rain  
The all encompassing passion of the sea.

"Blessed be this union with the gifts of the North  
Firm foundation on which to build  
Fertility of the fields to enrich your lives  
A stable home to which you may always return.

"Each of these blessings emphasizes those things which will help you build a happy and successful union. Yet they are only tools. Tools which you must use together in order to create what you seek in this union." Minerva looked at both of them. "Hermione and Draco have written their own vows for this occasion."

Draco took a deep breath. "Hermione. Mia. I never thought that this day would come. I've loved you since fourth year; you were a shining light in my world of darkness. It was because of you that I didn't follow the path that my father had set forth for me and for that, I am eternally grateful. I don't know why the Gods have decided to smile down on me, but I'm going to accept this with my heart. I promise to be your friend, your partner, your lover. I will be with you through good times and bad, protect you from any harm and grow with you in mind and spirit. I love you with all my heart and can't imagine my life without you."

Hermione had tears in her eyes as he finished, and smiled at him, happiness radiating off of her in waves. She took a deep breath before starting her own vows. "Draco, I never expected to love you. When I found out that it was you that I was going to marry I was distraught due to my history with your family during the war, but you showed me that you were nothing like them. You sheltered me from my emotions and made me come to terms with my past, and for that I will always be grateful. You did more than that. You showed me that no matter what, I am strong enough to deal with pain as long as you are by my side. I promise to be your friend, your partner, your lover. I will be with you through good times and bad, protect you from any harm and grow with you in mind and spirit. I love you with all of my heart and can't imagine my life without you."

Draco felt tears well up in his eyes as he tried not to break down.

_Albus, you were right, _Minerva thought as she wiped away a tear. "May I have the rings, please," she said to Blaise and Ginny, who gladly handed her the unornamented gold bands. "The wedding ring is a symbol of eternity. It is an outward sign of an inward and spiritual bond which unites two heard in endless love, as the love is an unbroken circle. Draco, place this ring on Hermione's finger and repeat after me, with this ring, I thee wed."

Draco placed the ring on her finger and repeated the words.

"Hermione, place this ring on Draco's finger and repeat after me, with this ring, I thee wed."

Hermione placed the ring on Draco's finger and repeated the words.

Minerva smiled before continuing. "The couple has also requested a Wizarding bonding ceremony, so will their familial representatives please step forth?"

Blaise, Neville and Luna stepped back as Andromeda and Ginny kneeled next to Hermione and Draco.

"A magical binding is for eternity and it not something to be entered into lightly," Minerva said as she bound the couple's right hands together with a cord. "By witnessing this binding, Andromeda and Ginny, you make a vow to help the couple whenever they are in distress, to protect them from others who seek to break this bond. Do you do so of your own free will?"

"We do," the women said solemnly.

"_Nacto amor," _Minerva said as the cord began to glow with golden light. "The couple is now bound for eternity with their love. Let no one strive to break them apart." She looked at the gathered crowd before stating that they could rise. "By the power vested in me by the Ministry of Magic, I know pronounce you husband and wife! Draco, you may kiss your bride."

Draco grinned as he did just that; kissing Hermione with all the passion in his heart and leaving her trembling with desire.

Bill flicked his wand again and _Ode to Joy_ by Beethoven began to play as the couple made their way down the aisle to go to the Great Hall for the reception.

About an hour later, in the Great Hall, Hermione and Draco were enjoying the well wishes of their friends and family. Hermione looked at Ginny who had a pained look on her face. "Gin? Are you okay?"

Ginny bit her lip as a wave of pain came over here. "Um. I think I might be in labour," she admitted as another contraction hit her. "And the contractions are less than two minutes apart!"

Hermione looked around in disbelief, grateful that she had invited Madame Pomfrey to the ceremony. "Come on, Ginny. We're getting you to the hospital wing because we won't have enough time to make it to St. Mungo's," Hermione said as she began to weave through the crowd, giving Lee and Draco a glance. She walked by Madame Pomfrey and said, "Poppy, Ginny's in labour. Are you up for making a delivery?"

Madame Pomfrey smiled as her eyes widened. "Of course dear, let's get you to the hospital wing."

Draco saw the group leave and cast a Sonorous on himself. "If I may have your attention please. It seems like we are getting a bonus today. Ginny Jordan has just gone into labour!"

The crowd muttered excitedly as Molly and Arthur took off for the hospital wing.

Hermione looked up in relief as they arrived. "I'm going to go change and I'll be back in a few minutes. Ginny, you can not have the baby until I get back, okay?"

Ginny, who was sweating rolled her eyes. "I don't think this is up to me, Hermione! You'd better hurry or you're going to miss the birth of your godchild."

Hermione nodded as she sprinted towards the tower. Once there, she used magic to help get out of her dress and was back in the hospital ward within ten minutes, dressed in a smart blue sundress.

She looked the people standing in the hall and smiled at the sight of so many people being there for the birth. She walked back into a scream of pain from Ginny.

"Come on Ginny, push," Poppy was ordering her.

"You can do it, Gin," Lee was saying with encouragement as he wiped the sweat from her brow.

Ginny just shot him a look of disgust as she bore down. "You are so doing this next time, Lee," she muttered under her breath.

"Come on, one more and the baby will be born!" Poppy said with encouragement.

Ginny nodded and tiredly bore down once again and within seconds, the sound of a newborn's cry echoed through the room. She sank back down in exhaustion as Poppy cut the umbilical cord and cleaned the baby off.

"You have a beautiful daughter," Poppy said with awe in her voice. "Do you have a name yet?"

Lee and Ginny smiled. "Anastasia Hermione Jordan," Lee said with a wink to Hermione.

Hermione blushed. "Thank you."

Draco, who was standing next to her, gave her a soft hug. "I hate to do this, but we need to leave if we are going to make it to our destination. There's only one outgoing Floo today."

Ginny saw the emotions warring on Hermione's face and nodded her head. "Go on Mia. Have fun on your honeymoon and I'll see you in a couple of weeks."

Hermione leaned over to give her a hug. "Are you sure?"

Ginny whispered in her ear, "Yes, I'm sure. And I want Anastasia to have some playmates."

Hermione's blush got even brighter at her comment, but she pulled away laughing. "All right. I'm going!" she said through the giggles.

Draco bowed slightly whilst gesturing her to the door. "After you, Mrs. Malfoy."

Hermione smiled as they left the castle to the well wishes of their family and friends.

--

When they arrived at the small island, Hermione was in shock. The temperature was moderate and they had their own private beach in front of the small cottage. "Draco," she murmured as she looked around. "This is breathtaking."

Draco smiled. "Not nearly as breathtaking as you were, my love. I'm glad you like it," he returned, stopping before threshold to the house and picking her up lightly to carry her in.

Hermione wrapped her arms around his neck as she pulled him into a kiss. Draco adjusted their course and headed straight for the bedroom and laid her on the soft mattress before looking her deep in the eyes.

Hermione nodded to him. "I'm ready," she murmured as she wrapped herself in his arms.

Draco felt a rush of love overwhelm him at her words and vowed to make this the best experience of her life.

And he did just that.

* * *

The handfasting ceremony comes from the following website: www (dot) handfasting (dot) info (backslash) hour (dot) html

_Nacto amor_ literally means in Latin: Bind Love.

**AN: **_Okay. I only got 14 reviews on this site, but due to some pleading from a reviewer at adultfanfiction (dot) net...I'm going to update! Next chapter is the final chapter!_

_Bella1992 - It's only been 3 days...Is this soon enough? I will probably post the final chapter on Saturday. Thanks!_

_ctc - Thanks!_

_BlueSunsetWaters - I know. I can't believe it's been a year since I started writing this during a fit of insomnia. But honestly, I'm glad that I'm done. I loved writing it, but it showed me that my true favorite genre to write is crime drama! Thanks!_

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	30. Epilogue

**Disclaimer: **_I live in Texas, not Scotland, so I am obviously not JK Rowling. I'm just playing with the wonderful characters that she created. I promise that I will put them back the way I found them when I'm done!_

**AN:**_Here's the next chappie!! Thanks to all who reviewed. As always, please R&R. My muse loves the attention. _

**Visited Upon the Son**

**© SparkyCSI**

**Chapter 30. Epilogue**

Hermione was sitting on her couch, with her feet up, trying to ease the swelling in her ankles. She glanced at the clock; Draco had said that he had some errands to run but would be home by three o'clock and it was just a couple of minutes after that.

Smiling as she ran her hands over her swollen belly, she thought back to the previous year. The first year of their marriage. For the most part, things had run smoothly. They got along well, but there were some fights occasionally. A time or two, Ginny and Neville had gotten involved to resolve their fight. _Two years ago, who would have thought that I would be married to Draco Malfoy and happily expecting our first child?_

She smiled as the baby kicked her again. She swore to Draco that it had to be a boy with as much torment as the baby was putting her through. She could handle the nausea, the weird cravings, but having the baby sitting directly on her bladder was killing her. _I have to go to the loo every five minutes, it seems!_ But, she was content.

Today was their anniversary and Draco had said that he had something planned. She had rolled her eyes and told him that as long as she didn't have to move from her current position, whatever he did was fine.

She was drifting into a light doze when a pair of hands covered her eyes. "Draco," she began in an exasperated tone.

"Hello to you, too," he replied as he leaned over the back of the couch to kiss her lightly on the neck. Hermione felt the familiar shivers run through her body. While things hadn't been perfect for them sexually—she was still prone to the occasional flashback—they were better than she had ever imagined.

"I've got a surprise for you," he whispered in her ear.

Hermione leaned her head back and smiled. "I told you that as long as I don't have to move, then its fine." She shifted a bit to ease the tension in her back, which had been having spasms all day.

Draco smirked. "You will have to move, just a bit," he told her, helping her off the couch. Still holding onto her hand, he guided her to the dining room of their house, which they had purchased after the sale of his house in Chelsea. They now lived in a large house outside of Hogsmeade, both agreeing that it was worth it to live in the country and be close to Hogwarts. She still owned her parents house, but after stripping it of anything magical, she was renting it out to Muggles.

Draco was the one that had suggested the idea, stating that it was something of her parents that she could still hold on to. He told her to close her eyes as they neared the dining room, and carefully led her in.

When she opened her eyes, she gasped in surprise. The table was set with a multitude of candles and a romantic dinner for two was set up. "Happy anniversary," Draco whispered, hugging her from behind, while rubbing his hands across her belly.

"Draco, it's wonderful. I love it," she murmured softly. She was about to say more, when pain lanced across her stomach and the twinges in her back that she had been feeling all afternoon intensified. "Oh…"

"Mia?" Draco asked, worry filling his voice. "What's wrong?"

Hermione left out a gasp. "I think I'm in labour!" She turned her eyes to him. "Draco, I'm not due for another month," she said, panic filling her voice.

Draco felt ice plummet into his stomach. "That's it. I'm taking you to St. Mungo's." He gathered her into his arms, which where shaking with emotion and carefully carried her to the fireplace. Balancing her lightly, he grabbed a handful of Floo powder and called out, "St. Mungo's, birth ward!" then stepped into the green flames.

When he arrived at the hospital, a Mediwitch greeted him and quickly asked him about the situation. She assured him that everything would be fine, before spiriting Hermione back to the emergency part of the ward, telling him to wait in the waiting room. He paced back and forth in the room, and for the first time in a long time he was terrified. Terrified that they would lose the baby, terrified that he would lose Hermione.

Within thirty minutes of arriving at the hospital, Ginny, Lee, Neville and Luna had all arrived and were watching him pace back and forth.

"Draco," Ginny said quietly into the silence. "She'll be fine. It's not unusual for first babies to come early."

"I know," was his monotone reply. "But the Mediwizard said that she was at high risk due to what happened to her. He warned us that she couldn't have any stress or she could lose the baby."

Ginny bit her lip, praying that everything would turn out okay.

Finally, a couple of hours later, the Mediwitch that had checked Hermione in came to the waiting room. "I'm looking for the family of Hermione Malfoy?"

Draco stood up reluctantly, not knowing what to expect. "I'm her husband."

The witch smiled. "Congratulations, Mr. Malfoy, you have a healthy baby girl."

Draco sighed in relief. "What about Hermione?"

The smile on the witch's face disappeared. "I'm sorry to say that there were some complications." Draco felt his knees buckle as Lee and Neville caught him. "But, Mrs. Malfoy is fine. Unfortunately, she will no longer be able to bear children."

Draco felt relief and regret course through him. Hermione and he had talked about having a houseful of children, but she was okay. That was all that mattered. He swallowed hard. "May I see her?"

"Of course. She is in intensive care right now, so only one visitor at a time. Follow me."

Draco nodded to the rest of the group before following the witch. When he got to Hermione's room, he looked at her through the glass before walking in. She looked happy, but her eyes told a different story. She was devastated.

She looked up and saw him. "Hi," she said biting her lip.

"Hey. How are you?" he asked carefully.

Her eyes welled with tears. "I can't have anymore children, Draco. They said the damage was too severe."

Draco wrapped his arms around her. "Shush. It's okay, Mia. You're okay and that's all that matters."

She snuggled into his arms, sniffing. "Are you sure?"

Draco nodded before smiling. "Yes. We can always adopt more children, Mia."

Hermione smiled, feeling a sense of relief wash over her as the nurse brought in their little girl. "Draco, I'd like you to meet our daughter. Narcissa Alexis Malfoy," she said as the witch handed him his daughter. He looked down with a look of adoration on his face.

"Welcome to the world, Cissa. You're mum helped to make it a safe place for you to live."

_Fini!_

**AN: **_Wow. I can't believe that this is at an end. It's been a long and sometimes arduous journey; from a crazy idea at 3am to a full completed story. I'm glad everyone stuck with me when I wasn't able to write a single darn word!! For everyone that ever reviewed, thank you from the bottom of my heart. It's you guys that convinced me to see this through to the end. And for everyone that read, thank you for giving me a chance since this is my first completed Harry Potter Story! I will say right now, that I have no plans for a sequel (I've neglected a series that I've been writing for way to long), but my muse is very temperamental, so I will not rule anything out! Remember to sign in before you review so I can respond back to the reviews! If you do choose to review as anonymous, then thanks in advance!_

_jessirose85 - Thanks! Honestly, I don't know if there will be very many HP stories. In my heart, I am a crime writer (my fav fandom to write for is CSI: NY) but I'll never say never with the way my muse is!_

_Bella1992 - Thanks! Here's the final chapter!!_

_woaivampireboys - I'll cringe along with you. I was tired when I was writing and didn't even look it up. I'm sorry!! At some point, I'll go back and correct it! Thanks!_

_spikeecat - Thanks! Do you want a tissue? (lol). I'm giving you one virtually!!_

_me-twilighter - That's insane! The closest I've ever gotten a a reviewer before was New Orleans. How you surviving the heat?_

_jocat - I can promise lots more on CSI: NY! I don't know about HP, though. I like writing it, but it doesn't keep my attention they way crime does. Thanks!_

_Azrulai - That's okay. I'm just wondering what a vacation is? I haven't had one in 6 or 7 years! That's my own fault though! Thanks!_

_MyChemicalRomance70 - Thanks!_

_Kat.1600 - Thanks! I'm giving out virtual tissues to anyone who wants one!_

_iPod Listener - Yeah! And now I'm posting the final chapter! Isn't it ironic? Thanks!!_

_ReaderforLife - Mine, too! Thanks!!_

_BlueSunsetWaters - It is, but I'm happy. The story really played out to where I had planned it (a miracle) and I'm glad to see if finished!! Thanks!!_


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